Beyond the Shadows
by Julissaway
Summary: Aristocrat turned thief, she becomes a high-class criminal. Until one day when a deadly curse awakens inside her from her dark past. Now, she must join the keyblade master to find her own key…to survival. RikuxOC
1. Chapter 1: A Thief

**Chapter 1**

* * *

The night sky threw its dark cloak around the dwellings of Traverse Town, hiding everything in shadow. The only light came from the clusters of stars beaming down from the heavens, and the indoor lamps veiled by drawn curtain. Not a single festivity decorated the streets tonight; the town was fast asleep…

Except for a lone figure that crouched on a rooftop. Long, dark-chocolate hair flowed down her back as the young girl took in her surroundings. Below her stood a small but regal shop; her target. It looked easy enough, but she had to remind herself how deceiving looks could be. She actually hoped this job was harder than it looked; simplicity bored her.

With well-established grace, she leapt from her perch and snuck through a window on the right side of the shop. Inside there were no lamps like the other houses, instead everything was pitch black. After letting her eyes adjust, she crept across the room, searching for the object in question. At last, near the cash register, was a wooden stand holding a massive, beautiful crystal.

"So I'm guessing this is it, right?"

The girl whipped around and grabbed the new intruder, drawing forth a small, three speared weapon—called a sai—from her hip.

"Geez Kalista calm down! It's just me!"

Kalista, which was the girl's name, instantly let go and put her sai back in place. "Ember! How many times do I have to tell you not to sneak up on me like that?!"

Her companion laughed softly, "Hate to break it to ya, babe, but we are _thieves_. "Sneaking" kinda comes with the occupation."

"Well, it doesn't entail scaring your partner half to death on almost every job," Kalista retorted, although she knew it was a rather weak argument. She knew she was always jumpy; always waiting for something to go wrong.

"So, like I asked before, this is it?" asked Ember again, looking at the giant crystal.

"Looks like it."

"Huh. Why do you think that Shera chic wants it so much? This shop isn't anything fancy, and this crystal may not even be real."

"Don't know," answered Kalista, "but she's not exactly paying us to figure out why she wants it. She's paying us to get it for her."

"Ok ok Ms. All Business," joked Ember, "I was just thinking out loud."

"Let's just get it and get out of here."

"Yes m'am. Gosh you can be so bossy."

"Not that it matters. You never take orders anyway."

"Nope, not really," agreed Ember as she silently lifted the case off the gleaming crystal. Making sure there were no traps or security protecting it, she carefully picked it up. Smirking triumphantly, she waved it in front of her fellow thief.

"Piece of cake," she grinned.

"Not quite."

The store lights flashed on. Spinning around, the two robbers spotted a tall, blonde man with an angry look on his face. A cigarette burned in his mouth, and he held a long spear in his hands. He was evidently the store owner, though he certainly didn't look like one.

"Damn that Shera," he muttered to himself, "does the woman ever get over grudges? I was never _that_ mean to her. And does she really have to get all fancy with the bandit hiring and all?" To the girls before him he said, "Alright ladies, show's over. Just hand over the crystal and you won't get hurt."

"I'm afraid you've got the wrong idea, mister," corrected Kalista, drawing forth both her sai. Ember in turn unfolded her retractable staff, and both girls took fighting stances.

"Well, well, looks like you two are more then just petty thieves huh?" mused Cid. He didn't like the idea of fighting girls, even ones who appeared as dangerous as they did. Still, he was pissed off enough that he didn't hesitate long. Leaning back for a second, he shot himself in their direction with his spear revolving.

"Ready… go!" yelled Kalista. Then the girls did the exact opposite of what Cid expected; they both sprinted in opposite directions. He had been so ready for an attack that in trying to stop, he tripped over his own spear and fell to the floor.

"Hey! Get back here you no good…" But it was no use; the girls were gone.

* * *

Kalista raced through the cobblestone streets, veering left to duck inside lean alleyway. Only when she reached the end of it did she stop to catch her breath. She had to admit it; this life of hidden crime she and Ember had stumbled upon certainly had its thrills.

Once her breathing became regular again, Kalista lifted her hand and focused on a point on the wall in front of her. Concentrating, she pictured the wall turning into swirling water. As expected, an aqua-colored portal took shape. Satisfied, she put her weapons back in their holsters and walked towards the portal.

But then she stopped short as a terrible pain shot up her left arm. Biting back a shout at the unexpected hurt, Kalista grabbed her arm, trying to figure out where the pain was coming from. Had she been wounded somehow? She hadn't been hit by the owner. The injury must be internal; it felt like a bolt of lighting was zapping her arm from the inside out. It jolted her over and over again until it forced her to her knees.

Panicking, Kalista tried to think of how to treat this mysterious injury. But the pain was getting so strong that she could barely keep from screaming, let alone think. Then, examining her arm, she was horrified to see it changing color. It was turning a deep purple, like some massive bruise was spreading from her hand to her shoulder.

Then, as suddenly as it had come, the pain vanished. Her flesh instantly turned back to its regular color.

Stunned, Kalista could only sit there panting. Finally, she struggled to her feet. The portal before her was still glowing with plenty of magic; ready to take her to her meeting point with Ember.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Kalista just shrugged her shoulders at the whole ordeal. Then, fully collecting herself, she entered the portal.

* * *

"I need you to find someone for me, for this person plays a very important role in Sora's story," instructed a man wearing a red bandage covering his entire face, save for his eyes.

"I thought you wanted me to find Roxas," answered the strange man's companion; a blindfolded boy in a black cloak. His long hair gleamed silver-blue against his light skin. He leaned up against a wall nonchalantly with his arms crossed, staring across the room.

"I do. However, Roxas is the one who will help Sora awaken. The other person I want you to find shall help Sora in his fight against the heartless and nobodies."

"And you know this… how?"

"When your friend, King Mickey, found the book with the prophecy about the Keyblade Master in it, that's when he came to me and spoke with me about it. Then, for safe keeping, he entrusted the book to me. After the King left, I read through the book, and found many interesting histories and prophecies.

One in particular caught my attention. It told about someone stricken with the "Heartless Curse", and that this person's destiny is intertwined with the Vanquisher of Darkness. Also, next to the prophecy was written a spell that could detect this "Heartless Curse". Since this person seemed of great importance to the survival of the worlds, I cast the spell. Well, for almost a year, now, the spell has not activated. I even began to think it never would... until now."

"So because this spell has activated, it means this... "curse" has taken affect on the person."

"Yes, that is correct."

"But why don't we just wait for this person to meet up with Sora after he's awake again. I mean, if they're destinies are intertwined, then they're bound to find each other sooner or later, right? Couldn't interfearing… I don't know… mess things up or something?"

"You've gained some wisdom I see. Yes, eventually they should find each other, but we can't wait for that. You see, once this Heartless Curse has been activated, it will begin posioning the person with darkness, and the longer it is inside them, the more it will control them. The darkness will cause great pain to their body, especially if they fight it. And, if they contain the curse for too long, they could be lost to it forever. The prophecy states that only when Sora and the one who has been stricken come together and share a unique bond is there a chance of lifting the curse."

"Ok, got it. Just one thing, though. How do you know that this "Vanquisher of Darkness" is Sora?"

"Well, who else could deserve that name?"

"... Point taken. So how do I find them?"

"Take this." The bandaged man handed the boy a silver chain. "This is what I cast the spell on. The closer you get to the curse, the brighter red it will glow. However, I'm not sure how accurate it is, so when you bring them here I'll have to make certain of it."

"Ok, whatever," and with that, the boy started walking out the door.

"Oh, and Riku..." the boy glanced back. "If the person doesn't agree to come with you and you have to fight them, remember that the curse may activate during the fight, making your opponent far stronger than before."

A smirk crossed the boy's face. "I think I can handle it," he said, and walked out.


	2. Chapter 2: Unexpected

**Chapter 2**

* * *

Kalista sat perched on top of a house, dangling her legs back and forth impatiently. _Where on earth is Ember?_ she thought in frustration,_ She's always late to everything._

This world was new; she had never been here before and therefore wasn't comfortable with her surroundings. Oriental buildings lined the streets and glowing lanterns were everywhere. The night was still young, so plenty of people roamed the crowded night-markets. It was too many people for Kalista's taste. She preferred jobs in the dead of night/ But their current employer was adamant; he wanted the valuable stolen while it was being transported through the busy streets, so that it could no way be traced back to him.

Stretching, Kalista winced as her left arm throbbed from the effort. She glanced down it. _Almost a week's gone by since my last theft work, but can still feel the leftover soreness from that...that... whatever it was, _she thought back to that night for the hundredth time, trying to remember what could have caused such pain. But there was nothing. _I just don't understand... I've got to figure out what's going on with me. What if it happens again..?_

"There you are!" Kalista's thoughts came to a halt. She looked over to see Ember standing on the other side of the roof.

"What do you mean "there you are!"? Of course I'm here, just like _you_ were supposed to be thirty minutes ago."

"Oh, punctuality is so overrated," said Ember with a grand air. She flipped her short, vibrant red hair and plopped down next to Kalista, "anyways, better late than never."

"Well, punctuality gets paid," retorted her partner.

"The thieves who get the goods get paid. And we still have at least an hour before the shipment is going to be transported anyway."

"Well, I knew you'd be late, so I planned it really early."

"Of course you did. But this time I have a good reason. Vua-la!" She pulled out of her pocket what looked like a white lipstick container. "Bet you can't guess what this is?"

Kalista looked at the small tube. Ember was an excellent fighter and something of a prankster, but her favorite thing was magic. She and Kalista could both spell cast, but Ember was especially talented at potions. She often experimented, and would come up with some of the craziest inventions. Some were useful, and others just ridiculous.

But Kalista couldn't for the life of her figure out what Ember could have done to lipstick.

"Go ahead, guess."

"um.... lipstick?"

"Oh, wow, you're a genius!" said Ember sarcastically. "Yes, it's lipstick, but not just lipstick. It has a spell on it."

"Well, I guessed as much, but what spell?"

"A sleep spell," answered Ember.

"A sleep spell? Why the heck would you use a sleep spell? You know, there's this other great invention called a sleeping pill…"

"No, no, you've got it all wrong. I made it so the spell doesn't activate until it's applied the second time."

Kalista looked at her friend in confusion. Then it hit her. "Wait, are you saying that if someone put that lipstick on and then _kissed_ someone else, the person getting kissed would black out!?"

"Bingo! Aren't I just brilliant?" Ember bragged.

Kalista just rolled her eyes, "Em, only you would ever come up with something like that."

"Why thank you, you're too kind," said Ember, smiling. Suddenly, she got mischievous glint in her eyes. "However, I've never tested it before, so I'm not sure if it works or not. And it's so boring always trying out my inventions for myself..."

Kalista cut her off, "Em, if you even _think_ that you're going to get me to use that..."

"Hey, come on! This is like the ultimate weapon here!"

"Oh, really? And how do you figure that?"

"Well, let's just say there's some guy that wants to fight you, but you're tired or not in the mood. You could knock him out without even breaking a sweat."

"Oh, please! I'd definitely rather fight him."

"I thought you'd say that. But come on; just take it as a last resort. Pleeeeaaaase!"

"Oh, alright! But only if you promise to be on time during our next job," said Kalista.

"Deal!"

Kalista grabbed the tube, opened it up, and put on the lipstick. "There. Happy now?"

"Quite. You'll have to let me know what happens when you use it."

"Get ready for disappointment."

"We'll see. And now if you don't mind," Ember stood up, "I'll be spending the next hour doing a little "shopping"."

"I swear, Em, if you're not back here on time…"

"Relax, bestie, we made a deal. I always keep up my end of deals, you know that." And with a graceful jump, Ember back-flipped off the roof and into an alleyway, taking off to the nearest night-market.

"Show off," Kalista whispered.

She hadn't told her friend about the incident from their last job. She wasn't entirely sure why she hadn't, considering Ember would be the one to know if it was some kind of magic. Honestly, it was her high sense of pride which had her always keeping things to herself. She also had, she had to admit, an overpower obsession to be able to be entirely self-sufficient. She hated the idea of being weak. It repulsed her.

But that's not why she didn't join Ember tonight. She had no stomach for pick-pocketing, and Ember knew that. Even after so many months, she still had a hard time accepting a life of crime. After most of her life in the high-class world, she couldn't help feeling it was all beneath her. _But then again_, she thought as she clenched her fits, _I didn't exactly have a choice in the matter. _But she didn't want to think about all that…ever again.

She looked down at the streets below her to distract herself. There were far less people now, although she was so high up no one would have noticed her anyway. A certain middle-aged man caught her attention. He was at a simple stand selling flowers of every shade and size. They were all foreign and lovely, and instead of distracting Kalista, it brought forth even more memories.

_Flowers were always my signature thing,_ she mused, losing herself in thought again, _my gardens covered practically half of our estate... back home... every species and color imaginable... but I never could get enough of them. They were so beautiful, and smelled so good. And... and every time... he came over...he... would always bring me some new kind I'd never seen before…_

"Beautiful city, isn't it?"

Kalista jolted out of thought and turned sharply around.


	3. Chapter 3: A Boy with Silver Hair

**Chapter 3**

* * *

"And…you are?" asked Kalista, mentally kicking herself in the head for being so caught-off-guard.

Before her stood a boy about her age, adorned in some sort of strange black cloak. He had a chiseled jaw and long, silver hair. His eyes, however, were blindfolded. Strangest of all, in his hand he held a long chain that was glowing a brilliant red.

"My name doesn't matter," the stranger answered, "what matters is that you cooperate and don't make things more difficult than they have to be."

"Is that so?" Kalista stood up to face this new threat. He was taller than her, and even beneath his cloak she could tell he was in good shape, meaning he was probably an experienced fighter. "And by "cooperate", you mean…"

"I mean you need to come with me… right now."

Kalista laughed out loud, "Oh, ok, sure. Taking off with freakish-looking people I've never seen before is one of my favorite pass-times."

But instead of being provoked, like she expected, the boy just sighed with impatience. He was obviously in a hurry.

"Look, I'm no good with convincing people," he began, taking a few steps towards her. As a response, she took a few steps back. He continued, "And I know you have absolute no reason to trust me. I don't expect you to. But I'm not going to hurt you. I'm only here for your help."

By now, Kalista's mind was reeling with confusion. Who was he? What did he want with her? And how could she possibly help him? More confusing still was his tone. Most people with malicious intent spoke either haughtily or with false kindness; their voice dripping with either pride or honey. But this guy spoke with neither. It was earnest, and almost genuine. It almost seemed like he was telling the truth.

But Kalista had been wrong about these kinds of boys before, and she wasn't one to make the same mistake twice. "Sorry, not interested."

Suddenly the boy smirked, "you make it sound like I was giving you a choice in the matter."

"We always have a choice," Kalista shot back, secretly forming a portal at the same time. It appeared right beneath her feet, and she fell through it instantly.

* * *

Rising up out of the portal, Kalista saw she was on the other side of the oriental city. _Damn_, she thought in frustration, _there's no way we can get the goods with that guy roaming the place. He'll spoil everything if he ever finds me again. I've got to find Ember._

With that, she ran into the nearest alleyway…and froze.

The silver-haired boy was standing right in front of her.

_You've got to be kidding me! How did he find me so fast?_

"I had a feeling you'd make this interesting," he said, pulling out a curved blade gleaming with black and red.

Now Kalista was mad. There was nothing she hated more than being cornered. She'd never get to Ember at this rate. She would just have to finish him herself.

"You know what? I've had just about enough of you. I don't know who you are or what you want with me, but there's _no_ way I'm coming with you!"

As a response, the boy rushed at her. Jumping up, he swung his sword down at her with lighting speed. She pulled out her two sharpened sai just in time and...

*clang*

She blocked his blow just inches from her face. The boy's eyes widened in surprise. Kalista couldn't help smiling a little with satisfaction. She loved taking people by surprise. She pushed and flung him backward. He did a flip and landed a little ways form her.

"So, I take it running away isn't the only thing you can do."

"Not quite. Now I suggest you leave, unless you want to see firsthand my talent for homicide."

"Sorry, not gonna happen."

"Fine," Kalista raised her sai, "have it your way."

Both fighters jumped into the air and clashed against each other, then pushed back and landed on different roof tops. The boy jumped from his roof to Kalista's and swung his sword at her feet. She jumped and kicked him in the face. He staggered backwards for a moment while blood ran from his mouth, but she didn't wait for him to recover. She threw one of her sai at his chest, but he arched his back, dodged it, and then grabbed the sai in mid air.

_Oh, great! Bad move,_ thought Kalista, now only having one of her weapons. The boy tried hitting her with his sword and she blocked it, but then he slashed at her with the sai and she couldn't get out of the way in time. She felt its sharp metal slice across her upper arm and winced. She tried to get away but the boy dropped the sai and grabbed her injured arm. Then he twisted it behind her hard, making her almost cry out in pain.

Then Kalista heard him uttering a spell she had never heard before. She hadn't been prepared for this, and struggled against his grip in her panic. But then her head started spinning, and her vision blurred. She tried using her own magic, but she couldn't concentrate long enough to think of a spell. Then… everything went black.

* * *

Riku felt the girl finally go limp in his arms. Laying her down on the ground, he took out some gauze and began bandaging her arm. The cut was deep; he hadn't meant to injure her that badly. But he also hadn't planned on her being such a skilled fighter.

When he had finished, he stopped for a moment to look at his defeated enemy. She was certainly nothing like he'd expected. Long dark brown hair fanned out from her face. Her green eyes, which had been filled with unspoken emotion before, were now hidden. Her skin was a few shades darker than his own, giving her a strange, exotic look.

Riku had to admit it; she was beautiful. As his eyes wandered over her body, he felt color rush to his face. He immediately shook his head to rid himself of the thoughts rushing through his mind. After all, this was business. She was just a means to helping Sora defeat the darkness. Nothing more.

Forming a dark portal of his own, Riku picked up the girl and carried her through it.

* * *

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
"Don't listen to her! She's lying!" I said, grabbing his arm.

"My sweet girl, I would never lie to you," said the horned woman, whose words sounded like a snake slithering through black water, "everything I've told you and the young man here is true. Come with me, and I will grant you all the power you could ever want."

"Liar!" I yelled, "You don't want to help us at all. You're just looking for slaves to do your bidding."

"Of course not," she replied, "though I must admit, you might have to do a few things for me in exchange for this great power, but it would well worth it. Behold!"

The witch-like woman raised her hands. Suddenly, the floor all around them turned dark, and at least a hundred black creatures with yellow eyes rose up from ground.

"You see?" the woman said, now no longer looking at me, but at the boy, "if you join me, all this power and more will be yours. This is what you want. I can feel your burning desire for power, and this is the only way you can have it. Join me!"

"No!" I said desperately, also turning to the boy, "Shaymar, please don't do this. Please!"

The boy looked at me. In his eyes I could see there was sadness, but even more there was a fierce hunger that I knew could never be driven out. "No, Kalista," he said, "I have to do this. If I don't, I know I'll go insane. You know this is what I care about, more than anything else!"

Tears started to form in my eyes. "More than even…. me?" I whispered.

For just a moment, his eyes softened. He brushed the hair out of my eyes. "Kalista..."

"ENOUGH!" cried the witch, "it is obvious the girl is weak and has no desire to change. But you, my dear boy, have a chance. Come, and fulfill your desire."

His eyes hardened again. He turned from me and walked toward the woman. I ran in front of him and tried to block his path, but he pushed me out of the way and kept walking.

"Ah! Good," said the witch when he reached her, and smiled wickedly, showing long, sharp teeth, "and now..."

She raised her arms again. This time, a glowing green light formed all over Shaymar's body. It got brighter and brighter. "ah, you can feel the power, can't you?" she said.

Shaymar closed his eyes, "Yes, I can feel it....."

All of a sudden he cried out, the green light turned black, and from it and all the other darkness on the floor and ceiling there came a terrible shrieking sound. Shaymar tried tearing the darkness off him, but he couldn't. The witch began to back away.

"Weakling!" she yelled. "And here I thought you'd be strong enough to contain it. Pah!" And with that, she formed a dark portal and disappeared through it.

Then the darkness from the rest of the room began racing to the boy and started devouring him.

"NO! SHAYMAR!" I ran towards him. Suddenly, part of the darkness seam to stop and turn towards me. For a moment it didn't move. Then it rushed at me. I could feel it enshrouding me. It felt like needles tearing at my flesh. I could feel your blood burning. I screamed. Everything was becoming darker and darker until.....  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Kalista woke with a start, eyes still closed. Sweat was running down her face and she moaned. _Just another bad dream,_ she thought. She moved her hand to wipe her forehead, but felt resistance. She opened her eyes and looked around.

She was in a big, white and brown room that was empty except for a wood dresser and the four post bed she was lying on. Then she looked down and saw that her left arm was bandaged, and her hands were chained to the 2 sides of the backboard. The chains were also glowing a dim blue shade.

"Ok, what the heck is going on?!"


	4. Chapter 4: Cursed?

**Chapter 4**

* * *

As Kalista sat in huge white room chained to the huge white bed, she racked her brain for some kind of explanation. Why on earth would someone want to kidnap her? Maybe it was an angry client she had turned down in the past, or someone she had stolen from who had finally discovered her. Whatever the case, she needed to get out of here as soon as possible.

She pulled hard against the chains, but, shockingly, they pulled right back. They pulled so hard, in fact, that she were flung up against the backboard and couldn't move.

_Oh, great, now what do I do?_ She tried pulling again, but the harder she pulled, the harder the chains fought back. In fact, she was focusing so hard on pulling that she didn't notice someone come in the room.

"Having fun?"

Kalista looked up. It was the boy she'd lost to. He was obviously amused at what he was seeing. Her mouth twisted in distain.

"Oh, yeah, loads," she answered sarcastically.

The boy stopped smiling and took on a more thoughtful demeanor. "I'm sure you probably have a lot of questions," he said, coming towards her, "I can't answer them all right now, but I'll answer a few."

He sat down on the right side of the bed. Kalista pulled her legs up closer to her body to get farther away from him.

"I told you before that I'm not going to hurt you."

"Oh yeah, you really kept that promise," she said, thinking about her hurt arm.

"That was your own fault," the boy shot back, "if you had come without a fight, I wouldn't have had to hurt you."

"So sue me for defending myself against a kidnapping maniac!"

The boy looked down and sighed. Then he looked back up at her. "I don't want you to see me as your enemy. Especially when we might end up as allies in the future."

"And that would happen why?"

"That's one of the questions I can't answer right now," he replied, "ask me something else."

"Fine. What's with the chains?"

"Please. After fighting you, I knew better than to leave you alone unbound."

"No, I mean, how are they _alive_?"

"Oh. Well, these chains are specially made so that the more you fight them, the more impossible it is to escape, as I see you've already figured out."

"Yeah, whatever." Kalista began wondering how she was ever going to escape now. She decided to get as much info as she could. Maybe that would help.

"Where am I?"

"In a world far from our last location. The house you're in is called the Old Mansion."

_Great,_ She thought, _I have no idea where that is._ Aloud she asked, "Ok, and why did you kidnap me and bring me here."

"I told you before... I might need your help."

"And why is that?"

"I can't answer that."

"What is it with you and not answering my questions?!"

"Because I can't trust you with that knowledge. Not until we find out if you're the one that the prophecy spoke of."

"We?"

The boy didn't answer her. He was looking at the door. "It's time to go." He said, and leaned over Kalista to her left chained arm. He got so close it made Kalista squirm internally with discomfort. He touched the chain, and it fell off. The clasp, however, stayed on her wrist. Then he did the same to her other hand. But once he did, the two clasps glowed bright and then collided, slamming her hands together, and they wouldn't come apart.

"Come with me," said the boy, grabbing her arm and pulling her with him. She didn't fight because she had no idea what the chains would do next if she did. Plus, all this talk about a prophecy and needing her for something had slightly sparked her curiosity.

He led Kalista out of the room and down a long stairway. Then he turned right and went into another room. He touched something in the room, and out of the floor formed another staircase. They both walked down it and into yet another room. This room was dark except for some sort of computer, with at least 6 screens that were glowing. Sitting at the chair of the computer was a man. He turned around when they entered. He had a red bandage covering almost his enire face.

"Welcome, young lady," he said, "please have a seat."

"Uh... thanks?" the boy let go of Kalista's arm and stood by the door. She sat down in a chair by the wall.

"Would you be so kind as to tell us your name?"

"Why?"

"I only wish to address you properly."

She couldn't really argue with that. "My name's Kalista."

"Very well, Kalista, I apologize for any inconvenience you might have been given in being brought here. But you see, there is a prophecy about a certain person who possesses a curse, and this person could be a very great help in saving the worlds from darkness."

"And… you think I'm this person?" asked Kalista, convinced she'd stepped into an insane asylum.

"It is a good guess. The red chain is known to be very resourceful." That's when Kalista remembered seeing the boy for the first time. He was holding a chain that glowed red.

"However, we can't be certain," the man continued, "in order to know for sure, I've created a magic scanner to tell us if you really are cursed. Which leads me to this question: have you recently experienced something strange happen to you? Some strange—and perhaps painful— feeling in your body? Something you can't explain the cause of?"

Kalista felt her blood get cold. That night, when she were stealing the crystal in Traverse Town...what had happened to her arm… could that have been...?

There were a lot of things Kalista hated, but one thing she really loathed was others knowing something about her that she herself didn't even know. Besides, there was no way what happened to her had anything to do with this "curse" hoax. _In any case, they can't be trusted._

"No," she said, "I've never had anything like that happen before."

The man was silent for a moment. "Well, I still wished to have you scanned. Riku, if you would…" he said, and nodded to the boy. Riku came over to her and took her arm, once again leading her out of the room and up the stairs.

During this time Kalista was desperately trying to figure out how to escape. There was no way she was getting in some crazy magical contraption that would probably just blow her into a million pieces. _The boy said that these chains will always resist when I fight them... but what if I didn't fight at all? If I relaxed completely, would they relax just enough for me to get them off?_

She recalled how Ember had taught her a special martial art which helped to relax the mind and body. So she tried it. As she walked, she started breathing slowly, letting her mind go blank. The rhythm of walking lulled her senses, and she felt the tenseness ease from her body. And just like that, the clasps slipped from her hands.

Immediately coming back to her senses, Kalista made a run for the door. But she wasn't fast enough.

Riku caught hold of her and tried refastening the magic handcuffs. Kalista snatched them out of his hands and threw them across the room. Improvising, Riku kicked her legs out from under her and pinned her to the floor.

"You never know when to quit, do you?" he asked, panting from the effort of holding her down.

"Let go of me!" Kalista demanded venomously, thrashing on the floor in an attempt to free herself. But he was heavier and stronger than her, and in this situation she was no match for him.

Suddenly, she remembered something. It was a crazy idea, and if it didn't work she'd be out of tricks entirely. She prayed that Ember was as magically talented as she claimed.

Managing to get one arm free, she reached up and forcibly choked him with a violent kiss. The rash act brought color rushing to her face and heat swarming all over her body. For a moment, her recipient appeared too shocked to move. Then he jerked his mouth away from hers and threw her back down on the floor.

"Wh..what the hell was that…?" but he didn't finish. His face started going blank, and in another moment he passed out and collapsed on top of her.

"Owww…!" Kalista groaned with pain as his weight crushed against her. With a great deal of effort, she was able to push him over just enough to get out from under him.

Once she had gotten her breath back, Kalista breathed a sigh of relief. "I can't believe it actually worked!" she said to herself, in amazement. "I really owe Ember for this one."

Then Kalista remembered something. She leaned over to the unconscious Riku and took the magic chain from his pocket. She didn't want them to find her again, especially not after this whole ordeal.

Standing up, Kalista summoned up what energy she had left and stuck her hand out in front of her. After focusing hard, the familiar blue, gleaming portal began to appear. She focused the portal to transport her back to her last location.

Then she stepped through.


	5. Chapter 5: Ethics

Chapter 5

* * *

~*~ Three months later ~*~

* * *

Kalista sat, once again, on a rooftop. It was always her favorite place to be. She usually felt too closed in when she was inside, and when she was on the ground she felt too low. But here, on top of buildings, she felt at one with the wind and sky. Here was the perfect place for her… especially when she needed to think. And she had been thinking a lot recently.

Mostly about what she should do now.

After the whole incident three months ago with her bizarre kidnapping, things had changed a great deal. When she had told Ember about what had happened, the girls decided it was best to lay low for a while. They did fewer jobs, and stayed in less crowded worlds. It wasn't ideal, but seemed necessary at the time.

Until a month ago, when they heard about a famous potions master who was looking for a new apprentice. Ember was instantly curious and wanted to meet him. Kalista, on the other hand, had no interest in sitting around a cauldron swirling strange mixtures together that usually ended in explosions.

Despite Ember's pleads, Kalista kept refusing, and for the first time in years the girls separated. Only temporarily, of course, but Ember's absence had affected her more than she thought it would. She had tried doing some jobs on her own, and found that not only was theft far more difficult alone, but also not nearly as fun without her best friend beside her.

Now she roamed world after world aimlessly. She had never felt more useless… or alone. It was strange, because she had always viewed herself as independent and self-reliant. But now, she realized grudgingly, she may not be as autonomous as she thought.

But regardless of what she thought, the unanswered question of what to do now still hung in the air.

Glancing down, she brushed some dirt off of her tight black pants. She then tugged at her violet tank top absentmindedly. Looking at her dark gloves, she wondered how long it would be before she didn't need them anymore, seeing as how she hadn't needed to steal anything for a while.

Suddenly she banged her fist beside her. Closing her eyes, she whispered, "Why, when I'm actually happy, do things always have to change...?"

"Take that!!!"

*THWACK*

Kalista opened her eyes with a start and looked to her left. There, about three buildings away from where she was sitting, stood a large amount of heartless. She knew because recently they had been appearing all over the place. But that wasn't what caught her attention.

In the middle of the heartless were a boy, a duck, and some sort of dog-thing. The duck was carrying a wand and shooting out magic, the dog was throwing a shield around, and the boy had a sword that looked like a key, which he had just struck a heartless down with.

_Ok, that is definitely the weirdest thing I've ever seen,_ thought Kalista, _I wonder how this is going to turn out. _Now interested, she got up and moved to the top of the roof for a better view.

There were two types of heartless, from what Kalista could see. One type, called Soldier, was sort of short, covered in armor, and rather uncoordinated. The other type was small and black that crawled around like bugs and could sink into the floor. Kalista shuddered slightly. She hated those.

About ten of the heartless closed in around the boy, blocking any escape. But just as they were about to attack, he raise his sword above him and yelled "Thunder!"

Out of nowhere, bolts of lightning shot down from the sky and hit all the heartless, causing them to vanish. The boy then proceeded to slash at the other heartless fighting his companions.

The three were apparently partners, since they worked together very well. The dog would hold the heartless back while the duck hit them with fire and ice from a distance.

The boy seemed the best out of them, though. He used mixtures of magic and sword moves to destroy most of their opponents.

Kalista couldn't help being a little impressed with his skill. Actually, his fighting form reminded her of someone, although she couldn't remember who it was.

While she was musing, a new heartless appeared. This one looked like a ninja and was carrying a giant ninja star. The boy looked up just as it threw the ninja star at him. In a flash, the boy arched backwards, dodging the star, and then grabbed it in midair.

That's when it hit Kalista. That was _exactly_ the same move used against her three months ago by....

She shook her head, trying to get rid of all those recent memories now pouring into her brain about what had happened three months ago. _No, no, no! The last thing I needed is more problems like being... what was it again... "cursed"? No, that old man was probably just a little too far gone, so just forget about it and worry about the problems at hand_, Kalista scolded herself.

She looked at the fight scene again. The three of them looked pretty tired, but the heartless were almost all gone now. She decided she'd seen enough, and got up to leave.

Then she stopped.

Out of nowhere, in place of the heartless, had appeared at least a hundred new creatures, who didn't look like heartless at all. They were a silver-gray color. Some were small and limber, while others were big and stocky. In an instant, all the creatures rushed at the boy, duck, and dog at the same time.

Immediately the three started fighting again, but Kalista could already tell that they were exhausted and couldn't fight all these enemies. She felt conscience stricken and compelled to help them.

"No!" she said to herself, "they're not you're problem right now. Just don't get involved."

"LOOK OUT!" she heard the duck yell, but it was too late. One of the giant creatures had stabbed the boy and he fell to the ground. Both the duck and dog tried to reach him, but there were too many creatures in their way.

Kalista closed her eyes and stamped her foot. "Ugh! Me and my stupid ethics!"

She pulled out her sai and then ran hard, jumping from roof to roof. At the last roof she leapt off, did a flip, and landed right in between the boy and his attacker. She pointed her weapons and drove them into the monster, causing it to vanish.

Then, with a great heave, she lifted her sai up and then smashed them into the ground. A blue colored blast shot out from her weapons and all the advancing creatures were instantly frozen in ice.

Then, the ice started cracking.

"Get down!!" yelled Kalista to the other two, jumping on top of the boy to cover him. The other two, not knowing what else to do, did as they were told.

The ice blocks shattered into millions of pieces and were hurled all over the place. Kalista felt a piece cut her shoulder and another cut her leg. Then, just as soon as it had happened, the shards of ice quickly melted into the ground.

That's when Kalista realized she was laying on top of a complete stranger and she probably shouldn't be. She quickly got off of him.

"Yeah, sorry about that," she said, offering him a hand. The boy took it and she helped him up.

"Uh, don't worry about it," said the boy, looking at her in amazement, "thanks a lot. I don't think we would have made it if you hadn't helped us out."

"Well… you're welcome."

"I'm Sora," said the boy, grinning.

By this time the other two had come up to them. "Oh, and this is Donald and Goofy," he added, introducing them.

"Nice to meet you all," said Kalista, "My name's Kalista."

"Pleased to meet you," said Donald, "that spell you used was very impressive. It takes a long time to learn magic like that."

"Thanks," said Kalista, even now feeling weak from the magic exertion. She had used up more than she intended. That's when Goofy saw her gashes. "Gawrsh, you're bleeding," he said, and they all looked concerned.

"Oh, those," responded Kalista, "they're just scratches. I'll be fine."

"Yeah, right," retorted Sora, "I highly doubt that. They look pretty bad to me." Then his face brightened. "Hey, why don't you come with us to see Aerith? I bet she can heal you in no time."

"Uh... no, that's not necessary. I told you, they're nothing. Really..."

"Oh, come on!" Out of the blue, Sora grabbed Kalista's arm and sprinted in some unknown direction, pulling her with him, as Donald and Goofy ran after them.


	6. Chapter 6: New Faces

**Chapter 6**

* * *

The four of them ran past shops and down many different streets, Sora dragging Kalista all along the way. Kalista, slightly dazed with all that had just happened, followed along blindly. She knew that her wounds could become a problem, even though she had said they weren't. _Ember always said that was one of my problems, _she thought idly as Sora led her down a stone stair case, _I never want to admit I can't handle my problems on my own, and that I usually just make it worse when I won't ask for help..._ she could hear the other two yelling at them to slow down.

Finally, after about five or ten minutes, they reached a stone-surrounded opening with a house nearby. Sora went right up to it and knocked. The door opened, and before them stood a girl of about eighteen with short, black hair.

"Hey, Yuffie, is Aerith here?" Sora asked the girl.

"Hi Sora," the girl answered cheerfully, "no, actually she's out right now… probably looking for Cloud somewhere. Why do you ask?"

"Well, she's hurt," he said, gesturing towards Kalista, "and we were hoping Aerith could heal her."

Yuffie looked at Kalista for the first time and saw the gashes in her leg and shoulder. "Ouch! Those do look pretty bad. HEY LEON!" She yelled back inside the house, "GET DOWN HERE YOU LAZY BUM!" Then she turned back the two of them with bipolar sweetness. "Come on in," she said, standing aside to let them pass through the door.

Inside the house were rows and rows of books, a bed, and a giant computer.

"Hey!! What part of "slow down" don't you understand?" panted Donald, who had just come through the doorway followed by Goofy.

"Heh heh, sorry 'bout that," apologized Sora.

"Don't feel bad, Sora. It's not your fault they're so slow," said a voice behind them. Everyone turned. At the top of the staircase was a guy in his twenties with brown, layered hair.

"What was that!?!" asked Donald, obviously offended.

"Calm down, I was just joking," Leon answered, coming down the stairs, "So what's up? And who's the new girl?

"Oh, right," said Sora, "This is Kalista. Donald, Goofy, and I were fighting some heartless, and were doing just fine, but then a bunch of nobodies started attacking us and we were beat. Then she came along and got rid of them all in a flash. But she kinda got hurt in the process."

"Huh," said Leon, glancing at Kalista's arm, "well, we'll have to fix that, won't we. Kalista, right? Would you come over and sit on the bed? Yuffie, go find one of Aerith's potions and some bandages."

Kalista was getting pretty dizzy by now, what with the running, different introductions, and the large amount of blood loss. She tried walking to the bed, but stumbled and would have fallen if Leon hadn't caught her.

"Whoa! Careful, sweetheart," he said, gently easing her onto the bed, "looks like you really are hurt."

"See!" said Sora, pointing his finger at her, "I told you that you were in trouble."

"Yeah, whatever," Kalista mumbled.

"I found them!" yelled Yuffie, running into the room with a bunch of white bandages and a bottle filled with a green liquid. She handed them to Leon, and he proceeded to treat Kalista. He poured the liquid on her shoulder and leg, and instantly the blood stopped leaving her body. But, the potion hadn't sealed her wounds, so Leon rapped them up with the long bandage folds.

"There," Leon said when he had finished, "better?"

"Um, yeah, thank you," answered Kalista, running her hand over her newly bound skin. She did feel better, but still exhausted. Now that her injures were taken care of, she was curious as to who all these new people really were.

"So... Sora," She started to say, but was interrupted by the door swinging open. A girl with long, pulled-back brown hair wearing a pink dress walked in.

"There you are, Aerith," said Yuffie, "we were wondering what you'd been up to. And I see Cid's back, too."

Kalista looked behind the girl to see who else Yuffie was talking about... and froze. There, standing behind Aerith, was an older guy with short, blond hair.

_It CAN'T be! He lives in Traverse Town!_

"Of course I'm back," he said, "I told you today was the day I planned to fix that pathetic excuse for a computer so...." Cid stopped talking, seeing Kalista for the first time. For a second he looked confused, then his eyes widened. "You! You're the girl who stole...."

Kalista didn't wait for him to finish. She knocked one of the huge bookcases loose and it tumbled to the floor, spilling books on everyone in the room. Taking advantage of the confusion, she pushed past Cid and then bolted out the door.

* * *

_I am so screwed_, Kalista thought dismally as she tore through the streets, making sure to use different routes Sora had to minimize their chances of catching her. When she was finally convinced she had run far enough, she ducked behind a broken down house to rest.

Running for her life when she was already drained had not been such a good idea. But what choice did she have?

It was even worse that those people had been so kind to her. Kalista wasn't even sure what to make of them all… especially that Sora. People weren't supposed to be so authentic and honest. She certainly wasn't.

She wished she could have stayed though, at least for one night so she could recover her strength. _But now this stupid theft had to come back and haunt me! Now once that guy tells them all I'm a "thieving criminal", I'll probably be lucky enough to get out of this world alive._

That decided, Kalista noticed her arm had fallen asleep. She shook it to start the blood flowing. Nothing happened. That was strange. She moved it around some more, but she still couldn't feel it. It felt paralyzed, like a log attached to her body. _What the heck?_ she started shaking it like crazy, just trying feel anything. But there was nothing. No feeling at all.

And then, like a lit match landing on gasoline, the inside of her arm exploded with a burning pain. Kalista chocked out a scream, holding her arm. It hurt so much it was almost too much to bear.

_This pain... it's the same thing that happened the night I stole the crystal..._

But this time it was worse. In horror, she saw her arm turning dark again, and then her hand transformed into a black claw, with long pointed ends. Then, the darkness on her left arm shot across to her right. Now both hands turned to claws, and the darkness slowly traveled up her arms, the pain increasing with each inch it gained. It went all the way to her shoulders.

Then, just like before, the pain and darkness vanished without a trace.

Kalista slumped against the house hiding her, taking a shallow, shaky breaths. "Wh..what is happening to me?" she whispered, "this is the worst pain I've ever felt, and I don't know what's causing it. The first time, I thought it was just a backfire of some magic I had used. But it happened again, and worse."

A voice she had heard three months ago repeated in her mind, "A prophecy.... a person who possesses a curse.... have you recently experienced something strange happen to you? Some strange, and perhaps painful, feeling in your body?"

Could she really be cursed? Kalista had so many questions. Cursed with what? Why? And by whom? And most important: how can she stop it?

She needed those answers. Whatever this thing was, it threatened her very life. But... how could she? She had no idea where to start looking for answers, and she wouldn't get far if she would constantly be getting hit with these…episodes. Grudgingly, Kalista realized the truth: she needed help. This problem she couldn't solve on her own.

She could feel her energy draining. Like the last time, but this time much faster.

She blacked out.

* * *

"Kalista? Hey, Kalista wake up!"

Kalista slowly came to as she felt someone shaking her. She opened her eyes and stared straight into Sora's face. At first she was confused, trying to remember what had happened. Then she remembered Cid.

She pushed Sora away from her and quickly got up, which made her dizzy.

"Hey, take it easy," said Sora, putting a hand on her shoulder to steady her. Kalista slapped it away. "I'm fine," she said, "I don't need to "take it easy"."

"Ok, whatever you say," answered Sora, "but why did you run out the door like that? You're hurt, and you could be worse by now."

"Why do you care?"

"You saved my life, didn't you?"

Kalista sighed. Why was this kid so nice? "What did Cid tell you?"

"I don't really know. After you ran off, he started saying something about you stealing a crystal of his or something like that. We all split up to look for you, and then ten minutes later I found you here, asleep on the floor."

"Oh, right. I was, um, well....." she couldn't think of an excuse fast enough.

Sora looked at her intently. "You blacked out, didn't you?"

Kalista gave up. "yeah, maybe."

"See! I told you that you're injures are worse by now."

"Oh, yeah," she said, "my injures..." So he didn't know the real reason. Well of he wouldn't. Now was she paranoid too?

"Come on," Sora said, "let's go back. You can spend the night and rest up."

"No, I can't," Kalista answered, "See, I, well, I did steal that crystal from that guy. See… I'm sort of used to be a thief. As in I take jobs from people, steal whatever it is they want me to steal, and then they pay me." _Gosh, compared to this kid I must seem like Satan or something._ "So, if I go back there, it won't exactly be a pleasant reunion. I think it's better if I just leave..."

She looked at Sora, waiting for him to respond.

He was silent for a moment, thinking. "Well," he finally said, "the fact that you stole wasn't right. But Cid's one to talk; he used to be a sky pirate, for crying out loud! I think maybe _you_ think that he thinks he's more mad at you than he actually is."

"You know, you're not really making sense…"

"Oh, come on. Let's just go back and I'll prove it to you."

"I told you, I'm not going…"

"You'll get eaten by heartless if you pass out alone again."

"…fine."

* * *

Kalista followed Sora back to the house. To her immense surprise, Sora had been right. Cid was actually not upset with her.

"Are you kidding?" He gawked, "that was a great theft you pulled; you even got past me! But that Shera didn't get to enjoy my crystal for long." He grinned proudly. "I was a thief back in my day too. But, if I find anything else of mine missing, _then_ we'll have a problem…"

* * *

**Hey readers! Hope you liked the chapter :)**

**By the way, I'm making it so Lion's house is bigger, has more rooms, and more than one floor.**


	7. Chapter 7: Kalista's Decision

.......................Then the darkness from the rest of the room began racing to the boy and started devouring him.

"NO! SHAYMAR!" you ran towards him. Suddenly, part of the darkness seam to stop and turn to you. For a moment it didn't move. Then it rushed at you. You could feel it enshrouding you. It felt like needles tearing at your flesh. You could feel your blood burning. You screamed. Everything was becoming darker and darker until.......

* * *

Kalista opened her eyes, shivering a little. "Why does it always have to be the same nightmare?"

She looked around, trying to get her bearings. She remembered that she was in Hollow Bastion with Sora and his friends. She settled back down in the bed. When they had been choosing rooms, she had gotten one on the 2nd floor. The room around her was a jade color, with pictures all along the walls, and two tall windows. She sort of liked this room. It had a calm, earthy feel to it.

"Hey, Kalista, you up yet?" She heard Yuffie yell from the outside of her door.

"Yeah, I'm awake."

"Good. Come on downstairs; Sora and Leon want to talk to you."

"K," Kalista yawned and rolled out of the bed.

She got dressed and walked down the stairs. Leon, Sora, Donald, and Goofy were huddled in a group, talking.

"I'm telling you, it's a bad idea," Donald was saying.

"Oh, come on! You saw how good of a fighter she is," replied Sora, "she'd be a great asset to the team."

"I said forget it!"

"Aw, Donald, stop being like that," said Goofy, "you never want to let anyone else join the team. Why not give her a chance."

"Give me a chance at what?" Kalista asked.

All four of them turned towards her, looking embarrassed that she had heard them talking about her. Leon was the first to speak.

"First off, I think you should know who Sora and his friends really are."

"Ok, so who are they?"

"Well, Sora is actually the Keyblade Master, whose mission is to defeat the heartless and bring peace to the worlds."

"And we," said Goofy, gesturing towards himself and Donald, "are friends and loyal subjects of King Mickey, who is also fighting the heartless."

That surprised Kalista a lot. "About a year ago, I had heard about a boy with a "key" who was fighting the heartless. But I haven't heard about him since then. So you're the boy?"

"Yeah, that's right," answered Sora.

"Then what happened to you over the last year?"

"I, uh, well, to be honest, I don't remember. Someone shut me, Donald, and Goofy into a type of sleeping chamber, and we just woke up recently."

"So now," continued Leon, "these three are still fighting the heartless, as well as a new found enemy: the Nobodies."

"The who?" asked Kalista.

"Nobodies. We don't know a lot about them, except that they are somehow related to the heartless, and they're just as dangerous."

"But what does all of this have to do with me?"

Leon looked at Sora, waiting.

"Well," Sora said to her, "your fighting and magic abilities are really impressive, and we were wondering if you'd be willing to join our team."

"So you mean I'd stick with you guys, fight heartless, and travel to different worlds?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

Kalista stopped to think. In all honesty, she actually liked the idea of fighting darkness with these three, especially since she didn't have much of a purpose because of her old team's split-up.

But she couldn't join them. Not yet, anyways. Right now, she needed to uncover what was going on with this "curse" of hers, and how she could stop it. But still...

"Um, do you guys really want me to come with you?"

Donald opened his mouth, but Goofy quickly shut it with both hands.

"Well," said Sora, "You'd be a great help. And with you on the team, we could probably find them a lot faster."

"Find who?" asked Kalista.

"We're looking for Donald and Goofy's king, King Mickey," he answered, "and my best friend, Riku.

The second he said that, it took everything in Kalista to hide the shock she felt. Sora and Riku, the boy she had met three months ago, were _best friends_!?! It certainly explained how Sora knew that move he used on the heartless. The same one Riku had used on her.

Then a new realization hit her. Riku, and the man he worked for, were the only ones she knew of that knew about the Curse. The Curse that she's now convinced she has. If anyone could tell her more about it, they could.

_Oh, why didn't I just tell them the truth three months ago when I had the chance_?! Kalista thought desperately. _Well, no use crying over spilled milk. This is my second chance at finding the, and I'll be an idiot… and possibly a dead man… if I don't take it_.

"Hey Kalista, are you ok?" asked Sora.

Kalista snapped out of thought and looked at him, realizing there was only one thing to do. "I'm coming with you guys."

Sora's face lit up. "Really? You're coming?"

"Yes."

"Alright!!"

"Welcome aboard. ahyuck." said Goofy.

"Oh, fine. She can come," said Donald, crossing his arms.

Kalista smiled at their responses. Then she thought about Riku again, and she felt color rush to her face when she remembered their last incident.

_Oh, man,_ she thought, _If and when I do meet him again, I've got some major explaining to do...._


	8. Chapter 8: Castle's Crisis

**Chapter 8**

* * *

"Sora... where are we?" Kalista asked.

She, Sora, Donald, and Goofy had been traveling in the Gummi Ship and were now hovering over a new world that she had never seen before. Staring out the window, Kalista saw a beautiful castle surrounded by lush, green lawns and gardens.

"To be honest, I don't really know," said Sora, "hey, Donald, do you know what this place is?"

"Well," answered Donald, who had also been surveying the castle, "I can't be sure, but I think that this may be the Beast's world."

Sora turned sharply to look at Donald, but because he was in the driver's seat, it caused the ship to swerve from side to side and knocked everyone but him to the floor.

"Beast?! Are you serious? Alright!"

"Sora, will you calm down!" Kalista said irritably, making her way back to her seat. "What's the big deal? Who's "beast"?

Sora was still acting very excited. "Beast is one of our old friends who helped us fight the darkness a year ago. C'mon, let's go see him."

Sora grabbed the steering wheel and plunged the ship straight down. It landed with a *thud* on top of one of the lawns.

"Sora!" Kalista groaned, once again finding herself on the floor, "I thought you said you knew how to drive this thing."

"What are you talking about? That was a great landing!"

* * *

The four of them left the Gummi Ship and headed to the front door of the castle. For a moment they stood there, not quite sure what to do. Then Donald went up and knocked.

A moment later the giant doors swung open. So they walked in.

They found themselves inside a huge entranceway with large pillars, and at the far end of the room was a large staircase that led to another giant door, and then split, going up to the left and right.

"This place is amazing," gapped Kalista.

"Yeah," agreed Sora, "but I wonder where everyone is..."

They kept walking. Kalista walked by a table with a few nick-nacks on it. Something about it caught her eye. She looked closer at the table. There was nothing out of the ordinary there, just some napkins, a clock, and a candlestick. And yet, something about the candlestick seemed a little... strange.

"Bonsure, mademoiselle."

"_Ahhh_!" Kalista screamed and jumped back from the table. The other three turned and ran back to her.

"What's wrong?" Goofy asked.

Kalista pointed to the table. "That candlestick just _spoke_ to me."

"What? Are you crazy? Candlesticks can't talk." Donald protested.

"On the contrary, monsieur, isn't it true that ducks should not be able to speak either?" All eyes turned to the table. It was the candlestick again. It made a gallant bow. "Greetings. I am Lumiere, at your service." Suddenly the clock that was also on the table began to speak as well.

"Oh, now look what you've done!" it said angrily to the candlestick, "you're scaring them away. Now there'll be no one to help the master."

"The master? Hey, are you guys talking about Beast?" Sora asked.

"Sora, stop. Don't encourage it," said Donald, who was now backing away. The two objects looked back at the visitors.

"Oh, my apologies," said Lumiere, "I suppose our appearance might be a bit shocking. You see, Clogsworth," he gestured towards the clock, "and myself are among the many servants of this castle. Long ago, a curse was put on the castle and all its inhabitants, turning us into household objects. And I'm afraid our master has had it the worst."

"So you DO mean Beast." Sora concluded.

"Yes, I suppose that's a name you could call him," Lumiere's face took on a sad tone, "you see, recently he has been acting very strange. He's been very moody, gets angry often, and is shunning everyone around him; even Belle."

"That's terrible," said Goofy.

"Who's Belle." Kalista asked.

"She's Beast's true love," said Sora, "and I can't even imagine him mistreating her." He turned back to the candlestick. "Why on earth would Beast act like that?"

"No one knows," Lumiere answered, "all we know is that a man dressed in a long black cloak has been coming here, and he's been talking to the Master. We think he's the one who's caused the Master to behave like this."

"Organization XIII!" Sora, Donald, and Goofy all shouted at the same time.

Kalista had had about enough of this. "Organization who? Exactly how many people do you know that I've never heard of?"

"Sorry, Kalista," said Sora, "I forgot you didn't know about that. Organization XIII is a group of powerful Nobodies who control other Nobodies to do their bidding. We don't know much about them, except that their dangerous and up to no good..."

"Sora?"

Sora stopped mid-sentence. They all turned toward the staircase. There, in front of the door, was some sort of large animal. "Sora, Donald, Goofy, is that you?"

"Beast!" All of them but Kalista ran up to him. She didn't know quite what to do, so she just stayed put.

"Beast, it's great to see you," Sora said with a grin. Donald and Goofy nodded their heads in agreement. Beast looked at them for a moment, but then looked down.

"Sora, it's good to see you," He said, "but you shouldn't be here. Please... I want you to leave."

"Huh? But why?"

The Beast shook his head, "Don't ask me that; you could never understand. And you can't help me. After all, I'm a monster. Who could help a monster? It's just better if you go." And just like that, he walked sadly back up the stairs.

"Beast, wait!" Sora called after him, but it was no use.

"You see," Lumiere said, "He's been so down; it's awful."

"Well, at least you're right about that," agreed Clogsworth.

Kalista felt sorry for the Beast. She couldn't imagine what it must be like to look so appalling, and be convinced you're a monster. She would probably stay away from people, too. The three others walked back to the table now, with Sora looking worried.

"I just wish there was some way we could cheer him up," he said, "I mean, there's got to be something we can do."

"Yes, yes, if only there was," mused Clogsworth, "poor master. You can hardly blame him. It's just so dim and gloomy here; nothing lively ever happens. Just think, long ago if we'd had guests like you four, we would've had such a grand time. There would have been such wonderful food, music, dancing..."

All of a sudden, Lumiere began jumping up and down. "That's it, that's it!"

"What's it?" everyone asked.

"We'll throw a magnificent party in the ballroom. That's sure to brighten up both the master and Belle."

"Sounds like a great idea," said Goofy.

"Yeah, and we'll go talk to Beast and convince him to come." Said Sora, eager to help his friend.

"Splendid, splendid!" said Lumiere, "and you'll be our guests, of course." He clapped his candle-hands together. Out of nowhere, all sorts of inanimate objects ran out of different rooms. Kalista guessed that they must be the other servants.

"Take each of our guests to their rooms and help them prepare." He instructed, and the servants split into four different teams.

"Hey, wait a second! What's going on?" asked Kalista as a coat rack grabbed her arm and pulled her up the stairs. The other three were being led up the other stairwell.

"Sora, what... where are they taking us?" she shouted.

"I don't know," he yelled back, "I guess they're going to help us get dressed for the ball."

"What!? But Sora... I don't do dresses!!!


	9. Chapter 9: An Enemy, and a Mystery

**Chapter 9**

* * *

The coat rack led Kalista up the stairs and down a long hallway. At first she tried to break free, but the rack was unsettlingly strong. In the end, she decided that fighting it wouldn't be very polite. After all, she was a guest and didn't want to be rude, so she simply followed behind. The castle certainly was beautiful. All along the hallway were dazzling paintings, tapestries, and suites of armor. The carpet was a deep green and very soft to walk on, and the hallway itself stretched beyond eyesight.

After a few minutes of walking, the coat rack turned and opened a door on the right and led Kalista through. Inside the room were fine pieces of furniture: a vanity, a shelf, a wardrobe, and a large draped bed. On the bed sat a lovely young woman.

"Why, hello," she said to Kalista, "and who might you be?"

"My name is Kalista, and you must be... Belle, right?"

"Yes, that's right. And what brings you to the castle, Kalista?"

"Well, I was traveling here with a boy named Sora and his friends."

Belle's face brightened. "Sora, Donald, and Goofy! Oh, I remember them. They were so good to me and Beast. They were the ones who helped bring our castle back from the darkness."

"Wow, really?" Kalista was beginning to wonder how many things Sora had done in the past. She resolved to ask him later. "Well, anyway, one of your servants... Lumiere, I think his name was, has decided to throw a ball to cheer Beast up. And the four of us are supposed to be the guests."

"Why, that's a wonderful idea," Belle's face clouded over, "but do you think Beast will want to come? He's been acting so dreadful lately, and I just haven't known what to do."

"I don't really know," admitted Kalista, "but, even though I've only been with Sora, Donald, and Goofy for a short time, I know they'll figure out some way to convince him to come, no matter what it takes."

Belle looked relieved. "You're probably right. I'm sure they'll find a way. But you must have been sent up here to get dressed for the ball, am I correct?"

"Uh, well… yeah, I guess so. But see, about that...."

But Belle was already running over to the wardrobe. "This will be so much fun," she said excitedly, "Madam, do you have ball gowns for this young lady and I?

"No, see, you don't understand," Kalista said, running over to her, "you see, I don't really wear... ... wait, who's Madam?"

"Ball gowns? Do I ever!" it was the wardrobe talking. It pulled out two beautiful dresses and handed them to Belle. She laid the one on the bed, and then handed the other one to Kalista.

"Here you go. This one will look lovely on you."

Kalista looked at the dress in her hands, then shook her head. "Look, it's nothing against you guys; I just don't like wearing dresses."

"Nonsense!" Exclaimed the wardrobe, "all girls like wearing dress."

"Oh, come on, Kalista," pleaded Belle, "you'll have such a good time. Besides, you can't go to the ball dressed like that."

Kalista hesitated for a moment more, but then finally relented. "Oh, alright," she said, with some exasperation in her voice, "I'll wear it."

"Wonderful!" said Belle, clapping her hands together, "Now you just go over in the bathroom and get changed."

Kalista did as she was told. When she came back out, she looked in the mirror. She was taken back at what she saw. The dress was gorgeous: a beautiful, dark green mermaid dress, and it fit her perfectly.

"See, I told you it would look great," said Belle with a wink. She had also changed into her dress. It was a bright yellow material that was tight around her waist and then broadened out at the bottom. She also wore yellow gloves to match.

"Now let's do the hair and make up."

"What?! Wasn't putting on the dress enough?"

"Oh, come on, don't chicken out now."

Kalista let out a sigh, "Ok, ok."

They both sat down at the vanity. Belle put on makeup and then helped Kalista do the same. When they had finished, the coat rack came over and began to do their hair. It did Belle's hair up in a bun, and then fixed Kalista's hair into long, loose curls. Just as her hair was being finished, there was a knock on the door. Belle opened it, and there stood what looked like a feather-duster.

"Bonnuie, mademoiselles," she said, "I am here to inform you that the ball has officially begun, and that you are cordially invited to the ballroom for an evening of music and dancing."

"That's our cue," Belle exclaimed, taking Kalista by the hand, "shall we?"

"I guess..."

Kalista now wasn't so sure she could do this, but Belle was already leading her out the door and back down the hallway. When they got to the staircase, Kalista couldn't help feeling a little grand walking down it, with her hand gliding down the banister. But it brought back memories from her childhood, which she quickly pushed away.

They walked through the large doors, and on the other side was a giant ballroom, with a huge dance floor and a dazzling chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

In the middle of the dance floor was the Beast, Sora, Donald, and Goofy, who were all dressed up in tuxedoes. Suddenly Kalista felt more awkward than she'd ever been in her entire life.

"Belle," she whispered, "what am I supposed to do?"

"Wait for one of them to ask you to dance," Belle whispered back.

"What? One of those three?"

"Of course. They're you're friends, aren't they?"

"I guess, but I barely even know them."

"Good evening, Belle," Beast and the others had walked up to them while they were talking.

"Good evening," she responded.

"Would you care to dance?"

"Of course." Out of nowhere, music began to play. Belle took Beast's hand, and they began to waltz around the room.

Kalista now felt even more awkward. She looked over at Sora, who looked like he felt almost as awkward as she did. Donald and Goofy looked at each other; it was obvious nobody knew what to do. Kalista gave Sora a "now what do we do?" look. He looked at Beast and Belle, then back at her.

"Would you... like to dance," Sora said, offering his hand.

"Uh.... sure."

Kalista took his hand and they began to dance as well. The music flowed nicely, so they didn't have to do too much. Donald and Goofy, now past the awkwardness, decided to help themselves to the food table.

"You look… really nice," said Sora uncertainly, but still completely honest.

"Thanks," replied Kalista, "… but you look ridiculous."

They both laughed.

"Well, well, well, isn't this a sight to see."

The music stopped. Belle and Beast stopped. Sora and Kalista stopped. Donald and Goofy stopped. All of them looked to the balcony above the dance floor. There, in a long black cloak, was the man who had spoken.

"It's the Organization!" yelled Sora. He pulled out his Keyblade.

"Xaldin!" roared the Beast, "What are you doing here?! Get out of my castle!"

The man laughed. "And why should I obey a savage animal, who has no purpose in this world? And if it isn't the Keyblade Master. Tell me, Beast, are you so weak that you must hide behind others for protection?"

"Silence!" Beast bellowed again, "enough, Xaldin; I've had enough. I'm through listening to your lies. Get out of my castle immediately!"

"With pleasure," said Xaldin, "but I think I'll take a little keepsake with me."

He held up a beautiful rose.

"Oh, no! It's Beast's rose," yelled Donald.

The Beast roared in anger. Xaldin laughed again and held his hand out in front of him. All of a sudden, a giant creature fell from the sky and landed in the middle of the dance floor. Beyond the creature, Kalista could see the Organization member fleeing the room.

"Belle," Beast yelled, "quick, get somewhere safe!"

Belle did as she was told and ran out of the room to the outside grounds.

"Kalista," shouted Sora, "Go after Xaldin. Beast, Donald, Goofy, and I will take care of this Nobody."

Kalista nodded and pulled out her sai. She ran after the Nobody and went back through the giant doors, slamming them behind her. She ran through the entranceway and opened the castle doors. Now outside, she looked around for Xaldin. She saw him a little ways from her on one of the lawns, and began to follow him.

But, once she got close enough, she realized there was another person standing in front of him. This person was also in a black cloak. Kalista quickly ducked behind a tree. She peered around it, and was just close enough so that she could hear them.

_This is not good,_ she thought to herself, _I don't know if I can take two of them on, especially not in a dress. Ugh! Why did I wear this dress? All dresses do is get in the way!_

"Well, so it's you," Kalista heard Xaldin say, "You're always making trouble. Why don't you go back to where you came from and stay there. I don't have time for you right now."

The second figure remained silent. They were standing directly in Xaldin's way. Kalista realized that the two Organization members weren't allies; they were enemies.

"Impertinent, as usual," Xaldin continued, "get out of the way, before I decide that I do have time for you."

Xaldin tried to pass the stranger, but they wouldn't move.

"This is as far as you go," said the stranger, who had a deep voice.

"So that's the way it's going to be, huh? Alright, it's your funeral."

Xaldin pulled out a weapon. The other person also took a fighting stance. But before either of them could make a move, the castle doors burst open and Sora, Donald, Goofy, and the Beast came out and began running in their direction. The second Orginizaton member formed a portal of darkness and vanished through it. Xaldin turned to face his new enemies.

"There you are," Sora shouted, "give back Beast's rose!"

"Just try and make me," taunted Xaldin.

The four of them ran at Xaldin, and they began to battle. Kalista watched the whole thing behind the tree. Xaldin was strong, and even with all their teamwork, none of them could get past his defenses. Kalista decided she'd have to draw his attention away from them if they could ever hope for a clear shot. Using the different trees and shrubs as cover, Kalista circled around the fighting. Once she was behind Xaldin, she muttered an ice spell over her sais. Taking a deep breath, she jumped out from behind the bushes and threw one of her sai at Xaldin's head. He turned just in time to block it, though.

"What, is that all you've got," he mocked.

But Sora had taken Kalista's signal. He and Beast ran at an unsuspecting Xaldin and began to form a Limit Attack. Kalista threw her second sai, and Xaldin blocked it easily.

"Ha! Pathetic!" He snickered.

"I couldn't have said it better myself," said Kalista with a smile.

"Twin Howl!" They shouted in unison. At that moment, Sora and Beast unleashed their attack. Xaldin tried to block it, but was too late. An earthquake shook the ground violently beneath his feet and he was flung backwards into the castle wall. He remained there for a moment, as if in midair. Then he fell to the ground. Kalista, Sora, Beast, Donald, and Goofy all ran to him, ready to keep fighting. But Xaldin was vanishing. Not by a portal, but evaporating into thing air.

"N... not bad," he said, and then he was gone.

In his place laid the rose. Sora picked it up and handed it to Beast. He took it.

"Thank you," Beast said, "all of you, for helping me rid myself of Xaldin and my hatred. I own you a great deal."

"Hey, don't worry about it," said Sora, "what are friends for?"

The beast smiled.

"Hey, Sora," asked Kalista.

"Yeah?"

"Do you have any idea who that other person was?"

"Other... person? What are you talking about?"

"You mean you didn't see him? He was dressed just like an Organization member, but he was blocking Xaldin from escaping just before you guys got here."

Sora thought for a moment. "Sorry, Kalista, I didn't see anyone else," He turned to the others, "did you guys?"

"No," they replied.

"Maybe he was tryin' to trick ya," offered Goofy.

"Or maybe you were just seeing things," said Donald.

"Whatever the case," Sora concluded, "it's nothing to worry about."

But for some reason, Kalista thought there was more to it than that.


	10. Chapter 10: Under Attack!

**Chapter 10**

* * *

"Kalista! KALISTAAAAAA!! Hey, wake up!"

"Go away!" Kalista shouted at Sora, who had been yelling at her from the outside of her bedroom door.

"C'mon, you've been sleeping forever! Besides, breakfast is ready, and Leon said if you don't get down to the table now, he'll eat all of yours."

"Well, in case you forgot, _I'm_ the one who did all the work yesterday at the Coliseum and won the final competition. I deserve some sleep."

"Uh, fyi, _we_ won the final competition together."

"Yeah, but I did most of the fighting."

"Oh, as if!"

Kalista sat up in bed. "Sora, if you don't get away from my door and let me sleep, I'll blast you through the wall!"

"Oh, really?"

As and answer, Kalista pick up one of her sai and threw it at the door, puncturing it.

"Ok, ok," yelled Sora, "you don't have to get violent." Kalista heard him leave and start walking down the stairs.

"And tell Leon he'll get the same treatment if he even THINKS about eating my breakfast!" She called after him.

"Whatever," he yelled back.

Kalista smiled and fell back in the bed.

It had been about four weeks since she had first met Sora and his friends, and since then they had been to many different worlds, fighting heartless, nobodies, and anyone else who was making trouble. And after Sora found the "keyhole" to each world, he would seal it, and they would return here, to Leon's house in Hollow Bastion. Then they would begin all over again.

Over these four weeks Kalista had become friends with Sora, Donald, and Goofy. They all had such fun-loving, carefree spirits, something she had sorely missed ever since her team broke up. She smiled again at how she and Sora treated each other. It reminded her of two siblings who are always fighting with each other, only the fighting is all a joke. She had also gotten to know Leon and his team, especially Yuffie.

Kalista began to think back over the last month. They had been to so many places, all so new and different. In Atlantica, for example, she turned into a mermaid and they all preformed with Arial in a giant concert. In another world they sailed on a ship with Captain Jack Sparrow and fought pirates for Aztec gold. Just yesterday they went to Olympia and fought in the Coliseum, and despite what Sora thought, Kalista was sure she had done most of the fighting.

But her favorite place by far had been Halloween Town. There, just like Sora, Donald, and Goofy, her appearance changed. She had the ears, tails, and claws of a cat. Even her eyes took on a cat's look, and she could see in the dark. There they had saved Santa Clause and Christmas Town from destruction. Kalista thought it was cute how Sora had been so excited about seeing Santa. She also thought it was typical that Riku had been the one who told Sora that Santa wasn't real.

A dark cloud of worry and doubt suddenly settled over Kalista. Even though they had been to so many places looking for him, Riku was nowhere to be found. And she wasn't sure how, but somehow Kalista knew that the curse was getting worse. She had experienced another attack over the last month.

It had been in Halloween Town, and luckily she had been alone. It hadn't been so much worse than before, although it was still painful. And yet, she could feel the curse, ever so slightly, in her daily life. It was hidden deep inside her, but she could feel it. It felt dark; evil. She needed to get rid of it, and Riku was her only clue.

"Ugh, that stupid mouse!" Kalista whispered fiercely.

Just yesterday, after they had returned to Hollow Bastion from Olympia, Donald and Goofy had finally been reunited with their king. He called himself King Mickey. After the reunion, he told them all sorts of things. He told them about the essence of heartless and nobodies, and how when someone is consumed by darkness, both a heartless and a nobody result.

He also talked about Ansem, and that's when Kalista learned that Sora had already defeated him his heartless, but his nobody was still around, and he was the one in charge of Organization XIII. But in fact, it was never Ansem's heartless or nobody who is causing all the trouble. They belong to his student, Xehanort. But for all his information, he wouldn't say a thing about Riku, even when Sora asked. It took a lot of control for Kalista not to hold a weapon up to the mouse's throat and make him talk.

For even though Kalista now realized she couldn't lift the curse on her own, she still didn't want her new friends to know about it. One, she knew they couldn't help her. Two, in a way, she felt like a freak; like there was a monster inside her. And she was afraid of what would happen if that monster ever took over. And she certainly didn't want the others to see it happen. In a way, she felt like Beast. She now understood how he had wanted everyone to stay away from him.

She had thought about that adventure a lot; the one when they had gone to Beast's Castle. Even though everyone had told her not to worry about it, Kalista could never get that second Organization member out of her mind. Who was he? Why was he fighting someone who was supposed to be his ally? All she new was that he was tall and had a deep voice. She hadn't seen his face because of the cloak and hood.

She was also very confused about the cloak, because not only did the Organization wear it, but she had seen Riku and King Mickey wearing them, too. The King said he had been undercover. Is that what Riku was doing, too? And who was Riku's friend, the man with the bandaged face?

Kalista had so many questions, but no one to answer them.

"Well," Kalista said to herself, "I guess the only thing I can do is keep looking."

"Hey Kalista!" she heard a voice from downstairs yell, "better get down here fast; I can't keep Leon away from you're food forever."

"Coming, Yuffie!" Kalista threw the covers off her and got dressed. Then she left the room and walked downstairs.

"Finally," said Yuffie, who was sitting at the table with Sora, Donald, Goofy, Leon, and Aerith, "Sleeping Beauty has awakened."

"Haha," replied Kalista. She sat down at the table and helped herself to the eggs and bacon Aerith had made. Sora and Donald were arguing over something, as usual.

"...I say we board the gummi ship and head to the next world," Sora was saying.

"No way," said Donald, "we just did a whole day's worth of fighting in the Coliseum yesterday. We need to take the day off and rest.

"But I'm not tired at all," protested Sora.

"Sora, you're never tired," stated Yuffie.

Sora turned to Kalista. "What do you think?"

"Well," she said after she'd finished chewing, "I'm not that tired, but I don't think we should run off to a world full of heartless and nobodies until we're at full strength. I think a little rest would be good."

"That's exactly what I've been saying," said Donald.

"Oh, c'mon you guys," insisted Sora, "where's your fighting spirit?"

Suddenly they heard the door burst open. Cid ran into the room, breathing hard.

"Cid, what is it? What's wrong?" asked Leon.

"Hollow Bastion... is under attack! Heartless and... nobodies are... everywhere!" Cid said through gasps.

"What?!" everyone said at the same time.

Leon stood up and ran outside. Everybody followed him. They climbed on top of a tall building and looked out over the city. It was true; heartless and nobodies where crawling all over the place.

"This is terrible. What are we gonna do?" Goofy asked Leon.

"Everyone get your weapons and anything else you need," Leon said, his eyes narrowing, "looks like we're in for one heck of a battle."


	11. Chapter 11: Defensive Strike

**Chapter 11**

* * *

Everyone nodded at Leon and ran back to the house. Kalista ran upstairs to her room and grabbed her two sai and her belt, which carried various magic potions. Then she ran back downstairs. She walked out the door and saw everyone else, now equipped for battle. Now that everybody was here, Leon started giving directions.

"Ok, listen up," he started, "our main goal is to figure out exactly where these heartless are coming from. In order to do that, we have to split up. Groups of two or three will be best." He looked around at them, trying to decide who should go together.

"Naturally, Sora, Donald, and Goofy will be a team. You guys will head to the path leading to the castle. Yuffie and Aerith will go to the shops, and Kalista and I will head toward the ruins. Let's go!"

Teams broke off and went toward their assigned places. Kalista followed just behind Leon, her weapons in the ready position. They had only gone a little ways when a huge number of heartless jumped down from the surrounding buildings and attacked. At once Leon pulled out his gun sword. Kalista turned and put her back to his, and once the heartless had closed in, they both jumped and took out the heartless in their sight range, so not a single one was left.

"Nice work, Kalista," said Leon.

"Thanks, you're not so bad yourself."

He smiled, then looked up overhead. "It looks like staying on the streets isn't the best idea. We'll have to get on the high ground to avoid any more ambushes." He jumped up on one of the buildings, and Kalista followed. Now on the roof, she was again amazed at the sheer number of the heartless. They were everywhere, crawling over the streets like swarms of black ants.

"What are they doing here?" she asked Leon, "what do they want?"

Leon shook his head, "I don't know, but whatever it is, we need to stop them."

The two of them ran and jumped from roof to roof, heading for the older part of the city, where most of the buildings were just rubble. Along the way, heartless kept coming out of nowhere, and in huge numbers. But Kalista and Leon made a good team; they were able to wipe out the heartless every time and keep going. Finally, they made it to the ruins. At the moment, it was deserted.

"We'll rest here for a moment," said Leon, who was breathing hard, "We need our strength to fight more heartless."

Kalista wasn't about to argue. She was also pretty tired. Leaning against a wall, she tried to regulate her breathing and relax her body. There were so many heartless! 'It's ok,' she thought, 'just a few minutes rest, and I'll be fine.'

She closed her eyes for a moment, concentrating on slowing her breathing down. Suddenly, something didn't feel quite right. Kalista opened her eyes and looked at the wall she was up against. It looked perfectly normal. But it felt strange, not like a brick wall should feel. She ran her hand along it, and realized it felt soft, almost squishy. She looked intently at the color. Maybe it was just her, but it seemed to be getting darker. It got darker and darker, until it looked like a black sphere in the wall.

Then, without warning, the blackness shot out of the wall, grabbed Kalista, and pulled her into the sphere. She struggled hard, but it was no use. It felt like chains were rapped all over her body. Then, everything went dark.

"Kalista!" she heard Leon yell her name, but the sound was faint.

She couldn't see a thing, and she couldn't move. She tried to scream, but no noise escaped her mouth. It was beginning to get hard to breathe. Kalista started to panic. Was she going to die here, without even knowing what killed her?

But then, just when she was starting lose hope, the darkness started squirming around her. She felt two arms grab her around the waist and pull her back the way she had come. The blackness around her became lighter, and all of a sudden she was back by the wall in her rescuer's arms. Kalista took a huge gasp of breath. She was shaking all over.

"Kalista!" she heard Leon's voice again. "Is she alright?"

"She'll be fine; she wasn't in there long. But it's a good thing I got here when I did."

Kalista looked up in surprise to see that her rescuer wasn't Leon. He was about Leon's age, with blond, spiky hair and a black outfit. Kalista almost dropped her jaw. He was absolutely gorgeous!

He bent his head down close to hers. "You ok, sweetheart?" he asked.

Kalista felt blood rush to her face. "I..uh...um...I'm.. fine," she finally managed.

He smiled. "That's my girl. Here..." he slowly helped her to her feet.

She felt so stupid, shaking like some sort of scared mouse, and hoped he hadn't noticed her blushing. "What... what happened?" she asked, trying to get over her awkwardness.

"You were attacked by a special type of heartless," the blond guy said, "they attack by pulling you into darkness and choking you to death. Luckily, that's the only one I've seen in the city as of yet."

"Well," said Leon, "I'm just glad you got here, because I had no idea what to do. So no that you're here, will you help us, Cloud?"

"Why do you think I came here in the first place? The heartless are all over the place, but that's not the only problem. Nobodies are starting to appear, too."

"Heartless AND Nobodies?" asked Leon in disbelief.

Cloud nodded, "and they all seem to be coming from the direction of the old castle. Oh, and one more thing. I saw Sora, Donald, and Goofy heading in that directing, but they met up with an Organization member, and it looked like they were having some trouble with him."

Leon looked down, thinking. Then he turned to Kalista, "Kalista, go after those three and help them out. Cloud and I will head to the old castle. When you're done with the Organization member, meet us there."

"Right," Kalista answered. This was going to be interesting. She was curious to see how well this Organization member fought. She did a back flip and landed on one of the roofs. Then, on a defiant whim, she put her hands on her hips and looked straight at Cloud.

"Oh, and by the way," she said, "I'm not "your girl"."

Then she turned and bolted away, hearing Leon's laughter behind her.

* * *

Kalista raced along the rooftops in the direction where Donald, Goofy, and Sora were fighting; trying to avoid the heartless. Strangely enough, however, there weren't nearly as many as before, and Kalista had wondered where they'd gone. She spotted nobodies, too, just like Cloud had said, but not as many as she'd expected. She jumped down from the roof and kept running along the street.

Finally, she turned a corner, and just ahead of her were steps that led to a giant sphere in the street. In the middle of the circle she saw Sora, Donald, and Goofy fighting a guy in a black cloak with dirty-blond hair. He was using a blue guitar as a weapon, and was hitting them again and again with powerful water attacks. Kalista recognized that he was strong, and the other three looked pretty worn out. Circling behind the Organization member, she waited for the right moment.

"Take this!" the guy was saying. He played some chords on his guitar and a huge wave formed, crashing down in his opponents' direction. Her friends started to dodge it, but Kalista knew they wouldn't be able to in time. She quickly muttered a spell over her sai and threw them at the oncoming wave. They hit the wave and instantly froze it in midair. Then she ran up to the Organization member and struck him hard from behind.

Now preoccupied with her, he was distracted long enough for Donald to hit him with a lightning attack. Sora then sprinted forward, and Kalista jumped out of the way just in time before the keyblade struck through the enemy. He let out a cry, which started loud, then slowly faded to nothing. Sora pulled out his weapon, and the enemy fell to the ground. As Xaldin had before, the Organization member began disappearing into darkness.

"I... I told them I was the wrong guy for the job," he said, and then vanished.


	12. Chapter 12: Endless Battle

**Chapter 12**

* * *

Sora looked at Kalista gratefully, "Thanks."

"Gawsh, that was amazing, Kalista," said Goofy.

"Yeah, it was pretty good, I guess," said Donald, a little grudgingly.

"Indeed it was," said a voice. They all turned. At the top of the stairs was King Mickey. Apparently he had just gotten there and watched the end of the fight.

"Your Majesty!" said Sora, Donald and Goofy.

Even though she wasn't really found of the mouse, Kalista smiled her thanks. But all of a sudden, she saw some heartless far up on a cliff near them. She saw them throw huge rocks in their direction.

"Guys, look out!!!" she yelled. She jumped out of the way, as did Sora and Donald. But Goofy didn't move in time. One of the rocks hit him in the head, causing him to fly backwards into a wall.

"Goofy!!" Everyone ran over to him, including Mickey. They shook him and called his name, but he didn't wake up. Sora looked at Kalista. She shook her head, unsure if Goofy was ok and not sure what to do next.

She looked at the King, and was amazed at what she saw. He was staring at Goofy, and fury etched across his face. Kalista looked at Donald, who was showing the same anger. Mickey pulled out his own keyblade.

"They'll pay for this," he said, and bolted out of the circle. Donald, who was now shaking with rage, started shouting incomprehensible noises and ran off after the King.

Kalista and Sora just looked at each other.

"Um...now what? I mean, should we go after them?" he asked.

Kalista looked down at Goofy, thinking. She checked his pulse, and it showed that he was alright, just unconscious. Then she looked in the direction where Donald and the King had gone.

"Goofy will be ok," she said to Sora, laying Goofy back down, "he's just out cold. Leon told me to come help you guys and then meet up with him and Cloud. I think that's the best plan right now."

"Cloud? You mean he's here too?"

She nodded her head.

"Well, I guess there's not much else we can do. Where are we going to meet them?"

"At the old castle," responded Kalista. She got up to retrieve her sai, which were still stuck in the frozen wave. She flicked her fingers, and the sai shot out of the wave and back into her hands. No sooner had she done so than the wave instantly melted, until only a large puddle was left in its place. She looked back at Sora.

"The road leading to the old castle is the same one that Donald and the King took," she continued, "we might be able to catch them on the way there. But we have to be careful. Cloud said he thinks the heartless and nobodies are coming from there."

"Alright! Let's go!" said Sora, brandishing his keyblade and ran down the road after his friends. Kalista sprinted after him.

The road became enclosed, and turned into a narrow valley; cliffs stood on either side of the two as they ran. Kalista kept glancing up to her right and left, ready to strike any enemies who attacked from above. And yet, just like before, there weren't any heartless or nobodies. Their constant absence was starting to make her nervous. Where had they gone? Her mind wandered to Donald and the King. She knew they were just over-reacting a little and would go mop up on the first group of heartless they saw. But she hoped they didn't do anything stupid.

The two of them kept on running. Then, out of nowhere, the wall to the left ended. Both Sora and Kalista stopped. With the wall no longer in the way, they realized that the canyon they had been running along was now high up in the cliffs. And they could see, in the distance, the old castle of Hollow Bastion. They could also see far onto the large plain that led to the castle. It was seeing the plain that made them stop.

"You... have got... to be kidding," said Sora.

The plain was colored black with heartless. It was like an entire army of them. And they were all heading from the castle. Then something caught Kalista's eye.

"Sora, look," she said, pointing at the base of the cliff they were on. They could see most of their friends: Yuffie, Aerith, Leon, and Cloud, who were all fighting the oncoming heartless.

"We've got to help them!" Sora yelled, and started running along the path even faster than before.

"Hey, wait up," Kalista called, running after him.

Sora, who was still running, glanced back at her.

"How are we going to beat all those heartless and nobodies?" he asked once she had caught up to him.

She shook her head, "I don't know. It won't be easy. We'll have to think of some sort of strategy...."

"Kalista!!!" without warning, Sora grabbed her pulled her down. Kalista felt a big rock wiz past her head as she hit the ground. She looked up to see countless heartless and nobodies standing on the cliffs right above them. She clenched her teeth, now realizing why there hadn't been any enemies on the road before. They had been waiting for them.

"Sora," she whispered, reaching into her belt, "get ready."

Taking the signal, Sora got into position.

The heartless and nobodies jumped from the cliffs down onto their pray.

Saying a spell, Kalista threw a potion at the approaching monsters. It explode, and suddenly all the heartless stopped moving in midair. Sora jumped up to the paralyzed foes and began slashing at them with his keyblade. But although the heartless stopped moving, the nobodies kept coming, headed straight for Kalista. She knew this would happen, and was ready for it. She thrust her sai into the first two nearing nobodies. Then she threw them into the next two. Now with free hands, she back flipped, kicking most of her enemies to the ground. She then flicked her fingers, returning the sai to her hands.

By this time, Sora had successfully taken out all of the frozen heartless. He landed back to the ground, breathing a little fast.

"No sweat," he said, acting cool.

But no sooner had he spoken then more heartless appeared on the cliffs. They jumped on Sora and Kalista, just like the last group had. Sora raised his keyblade to the sky and yelled "Lightning!" In an instant, lightning bolts shot down from the clouds and destroyed the heartless. But the moment they were gone, more heartless emerged.

Kalista jumped up to meet them and swung in circles with her sai stretched in opposite directions, slicing at the heartless till not one was left. Then she skidded to the ground. But she barely had time to breathe before another swarm of heartless were again jumping down on top of them.

"Sora, we've got to get out of here," Kalista yelled, "there are just too many of them. We can't take them all out, and they just keep coming."

Sora nodded his agreement, and got ready to take out this last wave of heartless before leaving. But just as he was taking his stance, Kalista saw nobodies rising up from the ground behind him. She started yelling at him to watch out.

"Sor....." suddenly, Kalista felt a huge pain in her head and back. Everything started going out of focus, and she fell to the ground. She tried to get up, but something was holding her down. She shook her head and looked around. She was surrounded by nobodies who had also attacked her from behind, and now she was at the mercy of their faceless forms. Her head pounding from the blow, she looked in a daze at Sora and saw that he, too, had been caught off guard by the nobodies. Now heartless were surrounding the two victims, as well. They began closing in. Kalista again struggled desperately to break free, but to no avail. She looked in front of her to see a big nobody swing a giant sword towards her. She clamped her eyes shut, waiting for the blow...


	13. Chapter 13: Ryu to the Rescue!

**Chapter 13**

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Kalista clamped her eyes shut, waiting for the blow...

But none came. She looked back at the nobody with the sword. It had dropped its weapon, and its head was looking up. In fact, all the nobodies surrounding her and Sora in the ravine were staring straight up into the air. And the moment Kalista looked up as well, she realized why.

There, in the sky, was a massive dragon. Its scales shone crimson red against the sun, and its claws and teeth gleamed with deadly fierceness. Its colossal wings slammed against the wind with mighty force, keeping it aloft. It led out a ferocious, thundering roar. The nobodies and heartless shook in fear. They began running in all different directions, trying to get out of the ravine. The dragon made another loud roar, then again opened its mouth wide. A surge of red hot flames exploded from its mouth toward the ground. Kalista's eyes went wide, knowing she couldn't dodge the fire. But right as the flames reached her, a strange barrier surrounded both her and Sora, shielding them. The heartless and nobodies, however, weren't so lucky. When the blaze diffused and the barriers vanished, Kalista saw that there wasn't a single enemy left.

Except, perhaps, the one above them. The dragon dove down into the ravine. It landed right in front of Kalista and Sora. They both stood there, weapons drawn, waiting to see what the giant creature would do next. To their surprise, the beast laid down on its stomach, as if it was done fighting. Then, most amazing of all, it lowered its head, revealing a human who had been riding on top.

"Hey, girl! How've you been?"

Kalista's jaw dropped. "Ember?!?!" she asked in disbelief.

"That's me, the one and only," said Ember, hopping down from the dragon and walking over to them. For a moment, Kalista couldn't even speak.

"Em, wh... what are you doing here. And since when... I mean... a idragon/i?! When did that happen?"

Ember laughed, "Oh yeah, sorry about that. I forgot you didn't know, considering I haven't seen you in a while. This," she gestured toward the dragon, "is Ryu. Just last month I traveled to his home world. There I saved him from a bunch of his bullying kin. He's been with me ever since. And who's this?" She was looking at Sora.

"Oh, right," said Kalista, "Em, this is Sora, the Keyblade Master." Sora gave a nod.

Ember looked surprised. "So uyou're/u the keyblade master. I've heard a lot about you." She turned back to Kalista, "Looks like we have a lot of catching up to do. But for now, we need to stop the rest of those heartless."

"Right," said Sora, "but how are we going to fight them all? I mean, there's so many."

"Why do you think I brought Ryu?" Ember asked. She turned and ran to the dragon. She whispered into his ear, and he began to get excited. Then she got on his back again. She looked at Kalista and Sora.

"What are you guys waiting for? Hop on!" They hesitated, considering that coming close to a fire breathing dragon is pretty intimidating. "Oh, come on, he's perfectly harmless." Ember insisted.

"Says you," Sora muttered under his breath, which made Kalista smile.

Finally, she took a deep breath and approached the dragon. Sora followed. Slowly, they climbed onto his back. Kalista was amazed at the smoothness of the scales. It felt like warm silk.

"What did you say to Ryu," she heard Sora ask Ember.

"I told him we're about to go kick some major heartless butt," she answered. She turned back to the dragon's head, "Ok, here we go!" she grabbed onto Ryu's horns and pulled up, which must have been the signal to lift off. Kalista closed her eyes, waiting for the impact. With a loud roar, Ryu began flapping his long wings and, with a jolt, lifted them all into the air.

When Kalista opened her eyes, she caught her breath. They were hundreds of feet in the air. It was incredible. The sky looked much closer, but was still an eternity away. Bursts of wind caused her hair to whip all around her face. Below, the earth looked as though it had shrunk. She could see the heartless and nobodies. Now, because of the distance, they were just a mass of black and gray.

"Hold on!" Yelled Ember. She pushed the dragon's horns. Ryu dove straight down with amazing speed. Kalista had to hold onto Ember and grip hard with her legs to keep from being knocked off. As they got rapidly closer to the ground, she saw many of the enemies stop at the sight of the massive beast, then try to run in fear. But once Ryu opened his mouth, Kalista knew they weren't getting away. As the waves of fire claimed more victims, she looked in the other direction because of the flame's heat. Behind her, she saw all their friends who had been fighting, but were now standing still in awe. Everyone was there: Leon, Cloud, Aerith, Yuffie, King Mickey, Donald, Goofy.... Goofy?

"Sora, look, Goofy's all right," she said.

"Are you serious? Where?" Sora also started to look behind him. But all of a sudden, the heartless made a counter attack. They blasted water and ice magic at the dragon. To shield himself, Ryu whipped his tail around and swung the spells right back at his opponents. However, Sora hadn't been paying attention, and before he could grab onto anything, he was flung right off the dragon.

"SORA!" Before Ember could stop her, Kalista jumped off of Ryu's back and grabbed Sora in midair. Thinking fast, she muttered a spell that slowed the movement of their fall. They floated to the ground.

"Thanks Kalista," said Sora in gratitude once they were on solid land again.

"No problem," Kalista answered with a little sarcasm, "But it'd be nice if you told me exactly _how_ many times I'm going to have to save your life, you dope."

"What, and spoil the surprise?" asked Sora.

Kalista just rolled her eyes and gave him a punch.

"Hey Sora! Kalista!" They both turned to see Yuffie and Aerith running toward them. "Are you guys ok?" Yuffie asked.

"Yeah, we're fine," she answered.

"Speak for yourself," muttered Sora, who was holding his nose from the punch. Yuffie hid a smile.

"Where on earth did you find a dragon?" asked Aerith.

"His name's Ryu, and he belongs to my friend, Ember," explained Kalista.

As if on cue, Ember floated down right beside them. "You know, Sora, when you're riding an animal, the idea is to stay on."

"Oh, shut up," he said, "and where'd you learn the same spell Kalista just used?"

"Well, we are best friends," was her answer.

By this time the others and reached them. Sora made a happy reunion with Goofy, now seeing that he really was alright.

"We were certainly glad to see you guys," said Leon, who was sweating from the constant fighting, "most of us are at our limit."

"Yeah," agreed Yuffie, "and now that we have a dragon, we'll be able to wipe the rest of these heartless and nobodies out in no time!"

"Don't be too sure."

All eyes turned to Mickey.

"Wh... Your Majesty, what are talking about," asked Sora in bewilderment.

But the mouse wasn't even looking at him. His eyes were fixed past all of them, fixed in a deadly glare. "Look," he said softly.

Kalista, along with the others, turned.

There, just beyond the fighting, standing atop a cliff, was a man in an Organization cloak. He had dark skin, silver hair, and yellow eyes. As if knowing they had seen him, he turned, and the moment those eyes were upon her, Kalista felt her blood freeze over. They stared straight into her, through her, like they could see no purpose in her life. Or any life, for that matter. They were void of feeling; completely empty. There seemed no emotion in those eyes, save for one thing. Hunger. Hunger for what, she didn't know, but it made her insides squirm.

"Xehanort," Mickey's voice caused Kalista to tear her eyes away from the yellow pools and look at him in shock.

"That's Xehanort?"

Mickey nodded, never taking his eyes off the man. "The man who betrayed Ansem the Wise, and the one responsible for these nobodies and the danger they've created."

Kalista saw Sora's hand clench his keyblade. He locked eyes with the nobody leader.

"You're going to pay for what you've done! Now come down here so we can end this!" He yelled fiercely.

Xehanort looked at the Keyblade Master, and a small sneer escaped his lips. He looked back at King Mickey, and then, for just a moment, his eyes flicked towards Kalista. It took all her self control not to shudder.

He turned from them and raised his hand. Instantly, a dark portal formed at his calling, and he stepped through, vanishing without a trace.

"Hey! You.... get back here," shouted Sora.

"It's no use, Sora. He's gone," said Mickey.

Sora turned angrily toward the King. "What sort of coward...."

"He's not interested in fighting right now. I'm not even sure why he came here in the first place," stated Mickey before Sora could storm on. But now that the Organization leader was gone, the mouse's eyes finally softened.

"But as much as we need to stop him, I'm glad he's left us for now," he continued, "just look."

The King was right. Since Xehanort was gone, he had taken all of the nobodies with him. Now only heartless remained, still trying to take down Ryu. Relief swept in like a calming wave.

_Now we'll definitely be able to stop the heartless._ But no sooner had Kalista thought this then something looked terribly wrong. Now that the nobodies were gone, the heartless began to appear more numerous than before. They were climbing over the cliffs and crawling out from under the rocks in twice the amount as before. Immediately, everyone broke out of the group and began fighting the rush of new opponents.

Kalista and Yuffie paired up, back to back. Heartless circled around them. They rushed at the two fighters at once, but the girls were ready. Grabbing Yuffie's hand, Kalista flung the ninja around in circles. Pulling out a shuriken, Yuffie slashed at the invading heartless, destroying them before any could get past her blade. Then the two girls split and took out the remaining enemies surrounding them individually.

"It's no use." Kalista heard someone say. She pulled her blades out of a large heartless and looked to find King Mickey standing next to her, keyblade drawn.

"It doesn't matter how many heartless we kill," he asserted, "they'll just keep coming. The only way we can fully stop them is to stop the source."

"You mean the old castle?" asked Kalista, remembering what Cloud had told her.

"Yes. The only problem is, we can't get there because of all the heartless blocking the way." The King looked directly at her, "But Sora tells me that you have the ability to magically transport yourself, is that correct?"

"Well... yes," now Kalista understood what he was getting at, "both Ember and I can create portals."

"But I can't leave," objected Ember, who had been fighting close by and listening to the conversation, "We need Ryu for this fight, and he really freaks out when I'm not around during battle."

"Kalista," Mickey insisted, "you'll have to go alone. Go to castle and find the source of the heartless. You must either destroy it or distract it in order for us to get past these heartless to help you. Do you think you can do that?"

Kalista looked at the mouse, then past the rampaging heartless to the castle. Whatever was creating all these creatures must be powerful. But if she didn't stop it, the heartless would keep on coming until her friends were completely spent of energy. She had too.

"All right," she said, grasping her weapons, "I'll go."

Fixing her sai in front of her, Kalista closed her eyes in concentration. Like clockwork, an aqua colored portal formed at her feet. Kalista opened her eyes again and looked at Ember.

"Don't worry," said her best friend, "first chance I get, I'm coming after you."

Kalista nodded, then jumped into the pool of magic.


	14. Chapter 14: Nightmares Return

**A/N: Hey, guys. Look, I know you all want Riku to come into the picture. So do I. It's just tricky, considering in the game you don't see him until near the end, but I'm trying to add him here and there. I can't really do too much between Kalista and him while he still looks like Ansem. That'd be a little too disturbing. But don't worry, he's not the only guy who has a thing for her.**

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**Chapter 14**

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It wasn't called the "Old Castle" for nothing. Once, it must have been a magnificent place, but age and war with darkness had certainly taken its toll. Still, it was definitely large enough to be a castle. It had looked much smaller from a distance, but now on the inside, Kalista realized just how big and intricate the bastion was.

Getting into the castle hadn't been so hard. She had easily been able to sneak past the heartless guards, which were very few. Most of them had been sent out of the castle toward the fight. One thing was for certain: the heartless were undeniably coming from here. She'd seen countless amounts of the dark creatures pouring out of the castle gates. But now that she was in the castle, the question now was how to find this "source" in order to stop them. What was the source, anyway? Kalista had looked in many different rooms, but all she'd found were bedrooms, bathrooms, or dining halls. The rooms were very ordinary, despite them being grand and full of dust and cobwebs. She hadn't found anything, well, strange.

_This is getting me nowhere,_ thought Kalista, getting more agitated as time went on, _I've got to stop whatever's causing these heartless before it's too late._

Traveling up the many floors and opening many doors, Kalista finally found herself in a beautiful library, with shelves and shelves of books. She walked through the old, unkept room. As she came to the far side of the library, she saw a staircase and a single chair underneath it. It looked rather odd and out-of-place, especially next to such a large window. Even though she was in a hurry, Kalista walked over to the chair and sat down in it. For some reason it felt strange to be sitting here, as if many people had sat here before. She closed her eyes and put her face to the window, feeling the sun on her face through the stain glass.

Suddenly, the warmth vanished for an instant, and then reappeared. Kalista opened her eyes with a start. She looked closely at the window. There it was again! Small shadows were sliding past the glass, blocking the light. She jumped back away from the window, realizing the shadows were heartless. They were crawling like bugs along the outside of the castle, heading down the main gate and on to the fight.

_So,_ thought the girl, _they're not coming from the inside of the castle, they're coming from the top._

Recognizing what she had to do, Kalista rushed back out of the library and started running down the hall. When she was a good distance away, she faced the wall to her right. Taking a deep breath, Kalista began imagining things that flowed and bended. She pictured an ice cube slipping into a cup of water. She thought about a knife sliding its way through hot butter. She visualized dipping her fingers into oil. Finally, looking at the wall, she envisioned it as nothing but a liquid mass. Slowly, she raised her hand to the stone, uttered a spell, and pressed her hand against it. But instead of the wall being solid, her fingertips melted into the stone as if the wall was fluid. Pressing the rest of her body against the wall, she passed through it like a ghost.

The moment she was on the other side, Kalista pulled out one of her sai and pegged it into wall to keep from falling. Strong gusts of wind whipped her long, dark brown hair into her eyes. She pushed it away with her free hand and looked around her. She was halfway up the castle, and beyond she could still see the battle raging near the town. She caught a glimpse of Ryu breathing fire, but was too far away to see any of her other friends. Kalista glanced to her right, eyeing the swarm of heartless crawling down the castle's side. She was now a good distance away from them, so they didn't notice her. She looked up to see where they were coming from. There, at the top of the castle, was a tower.

_That must be it._ Kalista pull her other sai from her belt along with a rope. Straddling her first anchored weapon, she tied the long rope securely to sai, than threw it upwards. It punctured into a part of the castle far above her. Pulling out her first sai, Kalista preceded to climb the rope. When she had reached the ropes end, she repeated the procedure. At last, she made it to the base of the tower. Most of it was enclosed except for one side of the circle.

Standing on tiptoe, Kalista was able to see into the tower's center. At first she saw nothing. Then she spotted a flicker of movement, and quickly ducked down before she could be seen. She heard a scuffle of feet, and then someone speaking.

"Doooh, now we'll never be able beat the Keyblade Master and his friends," she herd a low, congested sounding voice say, "I thought that there Xehanort was gonna help us take the town, but now he ups and leaves without no reason. What'll we do now?"

"Oh, be quiet you fool," The next voice slithered its way to Kalista's ears, "that pathetic nobody never knows what he wants. He probably would have turned on us anyway. And I've doubled the heartless, as you can see. Sora and his little friends don't stand a chance."

That voice had made Kalista stop breathing. She didn't know who it belonged to, but something about it awoke a terrible agony in her mind. That sleek, slinking tone; like a snake coiling around your arm just before sinking its fangs into your flesh. All of a sudden, images from her nightmares began to flash in front of her. She tried shaking her head to get ride of them, but they remained. She didn't know how, but she was certain: she had heard this voice before.

"But de got a dragon with them!" insisted the first individual, "and it's takin out our heartless by the bucket load. Look now. There goes a bunch up in flames."

"SILENCE!" Screeched the second voice, but who apparently knew what the first one was saying was true. After a moment of silence, they continued.

"Shocking as it may seem, you're correct, Pete. It seems I underestimated the Keyblade Master this time. I'm not sure how he managed to make a dragon do his bidding, but I'll find a way to nullify his advantage, if it's the last thing I do. Hm, that said, I suppose our only option is to leave for now..."

The voice grew silent.

Kalista heard small steps in her general direction.

"Why, it seems we have a guest."

Before she could think, a hand reached down and seized Kalista by the arm, flinging her from her hiding spot into the middle of the tower. Groping for her fallen weapons, she spun around in a fighting stance to face her oppressor. But as their gazes met, Kalista's eyes widened, and the sai fell from her hands to the floor with a _clang_.

Standing in front of her was the one person Kalista had never wanted to see again. The long, black dress, the green skin, the horned skull, the clawed hands clutching a tall, black staff; nightmares of her past. And that face, with its cruel eyes and mocking grin. Such a being had only one name. And she knew it all too well.

"M...M..._Maleficent_!!!" The name tore itself out of Kalista's throat.

The witch looked the young fighter up and down in surprise and confusion. Then a wicked leer crossed her face in recognition. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the little girlfriend," she said mockingly.

Kalista tried to speak. But all that came out was a scream. She darted toward the green woman with inhuman speed. She jumped up with her weapons aimed in a fatal blow. Maleficent rolled her eyes and flicked her wrist. Instantly, Kalista found herself paralyzed in midair. The witched waved her hand straight down, causing Kalista to be shoved to the ground.

"Well, it seems someone's gotten a bit vengeful, haven't we? I can't see why, though."

Kalista glared up at Maleficent. "You monster! You _killed_ him!!"

The witch snorted. "Don't start blaming me, little girl," she said, "It's his own fault for lusting after power. All I did was give him what he wanted. To bad he couldn't handle it." She waved her hand again, and Kalista was thrown to the other side of the tower, ramming into the wall. Gashes appeared all over her body, even though no weapon had struck her flesh. She felt warm blood seep through her clothes as she cried out in pain.

"Now if you'll excuse us," said Maleficent, "we need to be going."

She raised her hands and a dark portal appeared in front of her. She motioned to Pete (who during this time had just stared at the scene in confusion), and the two stepped through the opening.

"Come back, you coward!" Kalista yelled, throwing a sai with all her strength at the portal. But the dark hole had vanished, and her sai merely stuck into the opposite side of the tower.

Infuriated, she drove her other weapon into the ground with such force that the floor cracked and shattered all around her. Then, in despair, she threw herself on the ground, shaking with emotions she'd been pushing down ever since... that day. The day when her world had ended. The day he died.

She laid there, fighting the memories trying to force their way into her mind. _Why?_ Her head screamed to the world, _WHY?!_

She couldn't get up. She didn't try. She didn't move or make a sound. She didn't even breathe. In fact, she was holding her breath so hard, that her lungs gave out and she went unconscious.

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"Kalista? Kalista, can you hear me?"

Kalista's eyes slowly opened. When her vision cleared, she realized she was in Leon's arms, with him looking at her with a worried expression on his face. She looked around her. She was at the base of the castle. How she got there, she couldn't remember. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Yuffie, and Ember were all watching her anxiously. Cloud, Aerith, Cid, and King Mickey were a little ways off, casting each other worried glances.

"Kalista, what happened?" Leon asked.

For a moment, she wasn't even sure. Then, like fire, everything burned its way back into her mind. She took in a ragged breath and put her hand to her face, completely overwhelmed. The large loss of blood had made her weak. But the physical pain was nothing compared to the battle raging in her mind. Leon put her down, but she had to lean heavily on him for support.

"Kalista?!" Sora said in a concerned voice.

Kalista knew she had to say something; to let them know she was alright. But she couldn't make any sound. She kept trying to breathe, but she couldn't get enough air. She started to tremble again.

Leon slowly sat them both down and wrapped his arms around her, trying to calm her. "It's ok," he whispered, "just breathe."

For a few minutes, that's all she focused on. And with each passing minute, it became easier. Finally, she pulled herself away from Leon's embrace.

"I...I'm ok," she managed.

Yuffie sighed, and Sora looked like he would faint with relief.

Ember bent down next to Kalista and put her hands on her shoulders. "Who did this to you?" She asked with an unforgiving glint in her eyes.

Kalista didn't even look at her friend. She tried to take the emotion out of her voice. Surprisingly, it was very easy. "Maleficent," she said, "the source of the heartless was Maleficent."

Everyone gasped.

"But I thought she was dead," said Aerith.

"So did I," agreed Sora, "After all, I killed her... or at least, I thought I did."

"She was summoning the heartless from the tower," continued Kalista, "I tried to stop her, but she used some sort of gravity spell and pinned me to the floor... then she shot me into a wall and left." She gingerly felt her side, becoming conscious of how much it hurt from the blow. Her clothing was soaked with the blood from the mysterious cuts all over her arms and legs.

"So Xehanort's controlling the nobodies, and Maleficent's controlling the heartless," Leon summed up, "well, let's just hope they're not working together."

"Oh, please, two power hungry freaks like that could never work together," stated Yuffie. She turned to Kalista, "We should head back to Leon's place and have a look at your injuries. There are a lot of them, but none of them look very deep," she said, then smiled, "I'm just glad you're alright."

Kalista gave her a small smile in return. But when she looked at Ember, the smile vanished. Ember was looking at her with wide and worried eyes. Why wouldn't she? After all, she was the only other person in the group who really knew what Kalista had just been through. But, more than anything, Kalista wanted to shut this bad memory away with all the others. She put her hand over Ember's.

"Em, I'm fine, really," she said with more certainty than she felt.

Ember kept looking at her.

"Right, of course." Which was her way of saying, "Nice try liar."

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**Hurray that #14 is finally out! I'm going on a missions trip to Jamaica tomorrow (I have to get to the airport at 4 AM!!!) so I won't be able to upload any stories or probably even get on the internet until the beginning of July. But don't worry, I'll put the next chapter up right around that time.**

**Please read and review! It makes my day :)**


	15. Chapter 15: Midnight Rain

**Chapter 15**

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Night veiled over Hollow Bastion. The moon shone in a crescent shape; a smile or a frown? The stars were countless specks of light, as if someone had thrown fairy dust into the sky to give it splendor. Yet such a night, beautiful as it was, was missed by all, who slept soundly in their warm homes. Well, _most_ everyone.

Kalista lay on her bed curled in a tight ball, holding her head in her hands. Urged on by her concerned friends, she had dutifully gone to bed to regain her strength. But for hours she stayed awake, tossing and turning, her dreaded nightmares ready to consume her the moment she closed her eyes. It was too quiet; there was too much time to think. She had to go somewhere... to keep moving. That was the way she lived.

Unable to stand it any longer, Kalista slid out of bed and slipped her new outfit on. Her old clothes had been ruined by the blood from her wounds, which Aerith's potions had been able to heal. Yuffie used some of her extra clothes to put together a new attire for her. Kalista glanced in the mirror when she had dressed. Yuffie certainly had style. The girl in the reflection wore a strapless black corset shirt tied up in the front with purple ribbon. Separate sleeves, attached just above her elbow that flowed down to her wrists, were also black with a purple ribbon running up them. She also wore black shorts and black boots that came up to her knees. Kalista would have smiled at her new look, if her head hadn't been spinning with everything that had happened.

Walking over to the window, she slowly opened it and slipped outside. Making her way onto the rooftop without a sound, she leapt onto the roof next door. She was now on top of an old, abandoned house. This way, she wouldn't disturb anyone. She had often come to this place late at night. After all, rooftops were her favorite place to be. But even being here didn't ease the pain that kept racking her head. She sat down and looked at the sky. She couldn't even take in its beauty, because the face of a hideous green woman kept flashing in front of her eyes. She closed her eyes, trying to block everything out.

"Shouldn't you be in bed?"

Kalista turned sharply towards the voice that had spoken, even though she was pretty sure who it was. As she had expected, a girl with red hair stood on the roof a little ways from her.

"Of course, I wouldn't expect anything less... after what you've been through," she continued.

"Please, Ember, don't try and talk to me about it," Kalista said, turning her face away from her friend.

"I wasn't going to," she answered. She walked over to Kalista and sat down next to her.

"Lista, look at me."

After a moment of hesitation, Kalista finally turned her head toward Ember.

"I won't ask you about Maleficent, because I already know. That battle you have to fight for yourself," she looked Kalista straight in the eyes, "but I will ask you this: what have you been hiding from me? I knew something was wrong ever since you came back from stealing that crystal for Mirage. I just didn't say anything. Then you went missing that night in Traverse Town while the rest of us were at that party. You came back the next day, saying you'd been in the mood for a big thief spree. I knew you were lying, but I still didn't push you. I thought whatever it was couldn't be too big of a deal. But now you've joined this "Keyblade Master" and his friends in a fight to save the worlds from heartless and nobodies? You wouldn't do that unless you had a very unusual reason. So, Kalista, what's going on?"

Kalista didn't know why she had been surprised at all this; Ember could read her like an open book. All the same, she didn't necessarily like that. She sighed.

"I can't hide anything from you, can I?"

"No, you can't."

Kalista sighed again. She looked up at the moon. Suddenly she felt a strong urge to cry. But she didn't. She never cried. Not since that day. Instead, she decided to speak.

"Ember, I'm... cursed," she said the word with dread, but at the same time felt relieved to actually be telling someone. She proceeded to tell her friend everything that had happened to her since the night of her first attack from the curse. She described the type of pain she felt when she was struck with it: the burning and freezing at the same time, her skin changing to a strange scaly texture, and how each time it got worse. Then, she talked about the fight between her and the blindfolded boy with silver hair, about being kidnapped and her time at the manor, the strange man with the bandaged face, and the prophesy. She sheepishly told the story about her escape when the boy took her to be scanned.

Ember was silent the entire time, although her eyes did widen at the part about the kiss. Kalista ended the story by telling her friend about meeting Sora, and relaying her time with him and his band of friends. When she was finished, Ember finally spoke.

"So you've been with them all this time, but you still haven't found out anything about Riku? I mean, you know that mouse knows about him, but he won't say anything. So you're no closer than when you started."

"Yeah, pretty much."

"But then, why didn't you go off and look for him yourself? Why have you stayed?"

"I..." What Ember said was right. She would have just as much chance finding Riku or the man he worked for by herself. So why _had_ she stayed?

"I...I don't know," Kalista admitted, "At first it was just to find a cure to this curse. But now, I think it's more than that." She turned to Ember, "These people took me in. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Leon, Yuffie, Aerith, and even Cloud and Cid. They treat me like I'm part of their family. I stay because...well... because they're my friends."

It was rather strange. Kalista had always been the type who preferred to be alone, with only a few close friends she could turn to. Now, all of a sudden, all these new people had come into her life. She almost wasn't even sure how to handle it.

"So how much of this prophesy did that man tell you?" asked Ember.

"To be honest, not much. All he said was there was this "cursed" person who would help save the world from darkness. And then Riku said he had a friend who needed that person's help. I didn't really understand it all; I just know I need to get rid of this curse."

"Kalista, you're an idiot, you know that."

Kalista looked at her friend in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Think about it! You said Sora and Riku are best friends, and Riku said he has a friend who needs the cursed person's help. And maybe you haven't noticed, but _you_ are helping Sora save the worlds from darkness." Ember grabbed Kalista shoulders.

"Lista, you've been so worried about getting rid of the curse that you haven't even seen that you're fulfilling the prophesy!"

Kalista mouth dropped open. She hadn't even thought about that! "But, I mean, you don't actually think the prophesy is real, do you?"

"From what you've said, it seems the curse is real enough, so why not the prophesy?"

Kalista nodded, realizing it was true. She had never though much about fate, but now it seemed her future had been written for her. It made her uneasy, but she knew she couldn't avoid it.

"I just wish I knew more about what I'm dealing with," she said in frustration. "I feel like I don't know anything. I don't know the prophesy, I don't know why I'm cursed or how to stop it," she gave a half-hearted laugh, "I don't even know who's good or evil anymore."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, there's just this Organization member," Kalista explained. She hadn't understood how much that tall guy in the Organization cloak had bothered her. In fact, she thought about it all the time. She told Ember about her adventure at Beast's Castle, and about the cloaked figure who had blocked Xaldin from escaping.

"I know it's probably not a big deal, but for some reason it's driving me crazy. To be honest, at first I though it could have been Riku, since he had worn a cloak like that. But this guy was way too tall, and he had a very deep voice. He seemed like he could be in his 30s, and then he ran just as Sora, Donald, and Goofy got there, as if he didn't want anyone to know he was there. I just wish I knew why he'd helped us."

Ember was quiet for a moment; thinking. "Well, I have no idea who that guy is, so I can't help you on that. But when it comes to the curse, maybe you should read the prophesy if you want to know more about it."

"But I don't have the prophesy."

"Maybe I could find it for you."

"Really?" Kalista asked in surprise.

"I don't know. I once had this old teacher who helped me train in my potion making. I remember he had a huge, ancient library. Maybe I could ask him if he has the prophesy."

"Are you serious? Em, I don't know how to thank you."

"You can start by not asking me how I know the guy."

"I was about to."

"Don't," said Ember with a smiled. Then she looked at the moon and yawned. "Well," she said, "I'm going back to bed. I have to fly Ryu back to his home world in the morning and see if he can handle himself there. Then I'll see what I can do about the prophesy."

She put a hand on Kalista's shoulder, "But please be careful. Whatever's going on with you, it seems dangerous. You said the curse activates whenever you're fighting or under a lot of stress. So until we find out more, try to take it easy, ok?"

Kalista nodded, although she wondered how that would be possible, knowing her.

Ember stood up. Kalista stood up with her. "Em, thanks," she said. Ember smiled again, then jumped back onto the roof of Leon's house and slipped through the window to her guest room.

Kalista sighed again, but this time in relief. She felt very thankful that she wasn't alone in this anymore. And if Ember's old teacher really did have that prophesy, maybe that could be the first step to stopping the curse.

She felt a small tap on her arm. She looked up and realized it had started to drizzle. She couldn't help smiling and stretching out her arms; she loved the rain. After standing there for a few moments, she thought about going inside, but then decided against it. Instead, she jumped off the roof and walked down the street, enjoying the feeling of raindrops on her skin.

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As she made her way through the rain-drenched streets, Kalista found herself remembering times when she had done the same thing as a little girl. Her mother never let her go in the rain without covering, so she and her friends used to get umbrellas and balance on the edge of the sidewalks, pretending they were tightrope walkers. Of course, she always managed to get completely soaked, splashing in puddles or dumping water from the umbrella on top of herself. Eventually her mother just gave up telling her to stay dry. But she still always insisted on an umbrella.

Even when she left, her mother's last words to her were, "...sweetheart, please don't forget to use your umbrella when it rains." That was just like her.

A fog of sadness hit Kalista, and she pushed the memories back angrily. Why was she even letting herself remember in the first place? She realized that she had been walking threw a narrow alleyway, which had now reached a dead end. It was pouring now. Kalista decided it was time to go back. But when she turned around, she was greeted with the very last thing she wanted to see.

There, in front of her, stood five nobodies. Their shining silver bodies moved in unison as they slinked toward her. Kalista reached for her two sai, but then remembered she had left them at Leon's house, thinking the enemies had left this world for now. Cursing, she took a boxing stance.

"You guys aren't supposed to be here," she said in annoyance. Then she thought about how stupid it was to say that to them, considering they weren't going to leave if she said anything anyway.

The nobodies attacked, all charging at the same time. Kalista jumped up and landed behind them. Bending down, she spun and kicked three of them into the wall nearby. Then she grabbed the other two by their heads and rammed them together. All five vanished. Kalista felt shaky, and she became aware of how much the previous day's fighting had worn her out. Then, above her on the roofs, she saw more nobodies. She didn't stay for them to make their move. She ran out of the alleyway.

She kept on running, trying to make it to Leon's house before the nobodies caught up with her. She had to get help. Too late! More nobodies had appeared just in front of her, and the ones chasing her were right behind her. She was trapped.

Kalista ignored the weariness she felt and stood her ground. The nobodies jumped forward. Kalista fought hard, throwing punches and kicks until each enemy had sunk back into the ground. Then she fell on her knees, breathing hard. After a few moments, she slowly pushed herself up.

_It's ok,_ she thought, _just make it back to Leon's, and I'll be alright..._

A sharp pain in her back forced Kalista back onto the wet street. She glanced up and saw a huge nobody with an axe in its hands. Behind it were masses of more nobodies, in the street and on top of nearby buildings. They must have sent the smaller nobodies after her first to tire her out. It had worked. There was no way she could fight them all.

_I can't do this_, Kalista tried to move, but the nobody pressed its foot down on her, _I don't even have the strength the get up..._

The axe swung down toward her face. Kalista knew that this time there was no one to save her. She began to panic and closed her eyes in fear, and that same green faced stared back at her, sneering in triumph.

All at once, Kalista felt an explosion behind her eyes. She screamed in agony as she felt her flesh burning and ice freezing her bones. It was the curse. She knew, because she had felt it before. But never like this; never this strong. This time, it wasn't just painful... it was _alive_. She could feel it join with her body. Her eyes opened, but she hadn't opened them. The axe was still coming towards her. Her arm moved and caught the weapon just inches from her face. She was horrified to see the same scaly hand as before. The hand pushed the axe back, causing the nobody to fly into the air and crash into one of the rooftops. Kalista just stared. Such power! Had she done that? No, it wasn't her; it was the curse through her. But yet, at the same time, she felt the curse reseed its power slightly, giving her control. She wasn't tired any longer. In fact, she felt stronger than she'd ever felt before.

The rest of the nobodies attacked at once. Kalista's eyes caught their every movement. It looked as if they were moving in slow motion as she easily slid between their lunging forms. She bent and twisted her body to match their moves, her clawed hands sliced through countless numbers of them. One large nobody went to stab her with a sword. She jumped up... and stayed up. She grabbed the sword and slashed through the nobody with its own weapon. She threw wave after wave of nobodies to the ground and they disappeared into nothingness, until every last one was gone.

Kalista spun around, her eyes darting in search of any remaining enemies. There were none. She landed from her hovering state, and accidentally stepped in a puddle. She looked down into its rippling form, and gasped as a monster stared back at her. Red eyes gleamed on a white face with short, purple hair. Her ears had grown large and pointed, and horns stuck out of her head. The brown, scaly texture of her hands continued to her upper arms, but the rest of her skin was white like her face. She turned to the side, and shockingly found out why she'd been able to float in the air. She had brown, pointy wings! And a tail!

This couldn't really be her, could it? Suddenly the face in the water began to change. The horns, wings, and tail were disappearing. Her arms became smooth again, and her skin, eyes, and ears regained their human appearance. As quickly as this monster had come, it vanished. But, so did her strength, and she staggered and had to lean on a wall of a house for support. Her legs shook and threatened to give out. She wanted to collapse right there. Kalista looked up in the direction of the road she needed to take to get back...

_No..._

A see of darkness and yellow eyes stared back at her. They had come out of nowhere, but here they were. A swarm of heartless, all eyes fixed on the shattered girl before them. Kalista stared back, and part of her wanted to laugh. It looked like she really would die here tonight, no matter what happened to prevent it. The heartless rushed at her, and she didn't even try to move. Everything was getting bleary. She wasn't sure if it was the rain or just her. It didn't matter. Soon she wouldn't be able to see anything.

Before she had been scared, but now she didn't really care. She looked into the cold, emotionless yellow eyes and waited.

Just then, a clap of thunder struck the sky, and bolts of lighting shot down from the clouds, electrocuting the heartless. Kalista was taken aback in shock. That didn't make any sense! Lightning that powerful and direct could only have happened by using magic.

Many of the heartless had been destroyed by the attack. However, the rest continued to charge on Kalista. But before they could reach her, she saw someone jump in between her and the oncoming enemies. They drew a sword and rushed at the heartless, slashing through them with skill and ease. Kalista couldn't make out anything in the rain; all she could see was they were wearing all black.

_It... it can't be..._

The heartless retaliated, but they were no match for the stranger. Using a combination of lighting magic and sword skills, they destroyed heartless after heartless. Finally, the remaining heartless seemed to realize that they couldn't win, so they darted away into the allies or slinked into the ground.

The stranger turned toward Kalista. She could see now that they were wearing an Organization cloak. She knew it was him; the one from Beast's Castle. She felt like she should say something. She opened her mouth to speak, but everything started spinning, and she fell. But just before she hit the ground, Kalista felt strong arms catch her. They lifted her up and she felt herself being carried. She didn't know where she was going, but for some reason, she wasn't worried. It was probably crazy, but she wasn't afraid. In fact, she almost felt... safe.

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She didn't know how long she had been still and let herself be carried, but after a while, the person carrying Kalista stopped. She looked around for the first time. Through the rain, she saw that she was right in front of Leon's house. How had he known where she lived? She looked at the Organization member. He didn't look at her. Instead, he set her down on the ground, and turned to leave. Kalista became alarmed; she didn't want him to leave. She had so many questions. She didn't even know who he was yet.

"Wait!" she said, grabbing his arm with both hands. The cloaked figure stopped and glanced down at her. She tried to see under his hood, but was met only with darkness. Why had he helped her? Who was he? She wanted to make him stay. She wanted answers.

But there was something in those unseen eyes; somehow the way she knew he was looking at her, told her that he didn't _want_ her to know who he was, even if she did. There was a question in his face; he wanted her to trust him. But why should she? She didn't even know him. But, then again, he did just save her life. As raindrops slipped down her face, Kalista realized she owed him something.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Then his form went out of focus, and everything in Kalista's head went black.

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Ember watched through the window as the Organization member set Kalista down in front of the house. Then he turned and formed a portal of darkness and left.

"I knew it," she said, "and now to get some answers."

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**So yeah, this was a _really_ long chapter. But I think longer chapters are better than shorter ones. **

**Hope you guys liked it. Please review! I always appreciate it :)**

**Oh, and if you want to see what Kalista looks like cursed, I have a link on my profile.**


	16. Chapter 16: Atop A Dark Castle

**Chapter 16**

* * *

The darkness of night still flowed over Hollow Bastion. The tempest had finally stopped, but the smell of rain still clung to the air. The moon had once again revealed itself, staring down at the world below with its Cheshire grin... or frown, whichever it was. Beyond the city stood the Old Castle, grey and silent. Its inner rooms were dark and cold, and above, its towers were drenched with the past storm. It might as well have been a graveyard.

Suddenly, atop one of the towers, a strange, black and purple sphere took shape. Moving counterclockwise, it swirled faster and grew larger and larger with each passing moment. Finally, a dark figure stepped out of the sphere. With a flick of the person's wrist, the sphere vanished. Walking across the unusually broken floor of the tower, they made their way to edge and looked out. The entire city was quite, and only a few lights here and there would give rise to the belief that anyone lived there at all. The hooded figure leaned against the railing and gave an exhale.

"Nice view, isn't it?"

In a flash, the cloaked being pulled out a hidden sword and faced the unseen voice that had spoken. A slight distance away was a girl with short, fiery red hair. She sat on the railing, lazily swinging her legs back and forth. She grinned slightly as she watched her companion's reaction.

"What's the matter? Scared a little girl like me might hurt you?"

The cloaked figure lunged at her, their sword gleaming in the moonlight. The redhead gave a short laugh and jumped high into the air. She landed a little ways behind her attacker. They turned and brandished their sword, ready to strike again. But instead of responding, the girl just leaned against the railing, looking at her adversary dully.

"Relax, I'm not going to fight you," she said with a yawn.

Her challenger didn't lower their guard. They stood there, as if waiting for her to drop her lazy attitude and charge. The girl surveyed them with eyes of mild amusement.

"You really enjoy a good fight, don't you..." a smirk crossed her lips, "Riku."

The opponent stiffened in shock. They lost grip of their sword and it fell to the ground with a _clang_. For many moments, silence again filled the space between them. Finally, the figure spoke.

"H...how do you...?" They began, but the girl cut them off.

"Oh, and you can cut the deep voice act already. And go ahead and take your hood down, too. I'm sure you probably look like crap; otherwise you wouldn't be hiding from everyone. But, honestly, I've worked with magic and potions my whole life. You may be able to fool Sora and even Kalista, but you can't fool me."

"You know them?" Riku asked (for that was indeed who he was). His voice had changed from an adult's to someone in their teenage years. However, he seemed reluctant to take off his hood.

"Of course I know them," she answered, "my name is Ember, and I just happen to be Kalista's best friend. She and I grew up together. Now are you going to take your hood off, or do I have to make you?"

Riku sighed, but after a few moments hesitation, finally reached up and pulled his hood down. After surveying him for a moment, Ember cocked her head.

"Well, I can see why you hid yourself, but I've seen a lot worse."

"Oh, thanks," he said sarcastically, not looking at her, "How did you know where to find me?"

"I saw you bring Kalista back to Leon's house just minutes ago, so I followed you because I have some questions."

He gave her a skeptic look, "And give me one good reason why I should tell you anything."

Ember put her hands on her hips, "Because if it wasn't for me, both Sora and Kalista would be dead right now. So listen up. First off, what happened to Kalista tonight?"

Riku looked out at the dark city. He wasn't the kind of person to trust many people, but he decided this girl might as well be one of them. "I sensed a large band of nobodies grouped in one area. I knew it had to be a battle, so I went to see what was going on. When I got there, I didn't see any nobodies, but I saw Kalista who looked exhausted and about to faint. I assumed she had defeated them all but it had taken a painful toll on her. Then, out of nowhere, at least a hundred heartless started to attack her. I don't know where they came from, but she was in no condition to fight, so I fought the heartless instead. Then I brought her back to where I knew Sora was staying."

"But why would so many nobodies and heartless attack her in the first place? I thought they left this world for the time being."

Riku nodded, "so did I. Heartless and nobodies gather where there's darkness. But I don't understand why they'd all go after..." he grew silent.

Ember was quiet as well. Something that he said got her thinking. Then, it hit her.

"The curse, you idiot," she whispered to herself like she'd had an epiphany, "the curse must have activated, and that's why they were drawn to her."

Riku looked at her in confusion. "Wait a minute, how do you know about that?"

"Kalista told me. In fact, she's told me everything that happened since she met you."

Riku averted his eyes from her, and Ember saw his face turn slightly red. "...Everything?"

Ember couldn't help but smirk. "Yes, everything." Then she chose to have mercy on him. Pulling out a small tube from her belt, she held it up. "See this? I told you before that I specialize in potions. Well, this is a tube of lipstick that was mixed with a sleep potion. That day when Kalista made her "great escape" from you, she just happened to be wearing this."

After hearing this, it finally clicked for him. "Well, aren't you... clever," although the expression on his face said he thought Ember was out of her mind. She just rolled her eyes in reply.

"But wait, why would Kalista even care about that prophesy or curse? I mean, she told me she'd never had any affects of it at all."

"She was lying. Kalista never wants help when it comes to problems she's dealing with, which seems to be something you two have in common."

Riku looked like he was getting put out with all of Ember's assumptions about him. "So she really is cursed?"

"It seems that way. But you should have figured that out by now. I mean, it seems like you knew that Kalista had joined up with Sora and his friends, right?"

"Yeah, I knew."

"Doesn't that sound like the prophesy to you?"

"I guess, but I don't know much about the prophesy. DiZ only told me a small part of it. So Kalista joined Sora to fulfill the prophesy?"

Ember shook her head, "No, she barely knows anything about it either. The reason she joined with Sora was because you and him are best friends, and she's been trying to find _you_."

Riku looked taken aback, "why me?"

"Because she trying to lift the curse, stupid. You have no idea how painful it is for her. More than anything, she wants to get rid of it, and you were the only other person who knew about it. That's why I followed you in the first place."

His faced looked crestfallen, "but I don't know anything about it."

"Then I'll tell her she's wasting her time."

"Don't tell her that!"

Ember eyed him curiously, "And why not?"

For a second, Riku looked embarrassed from his outburst. "Forget it," he said quickly, "I...just don't want her to leave Sora and ruin the prophesy. Because if she does, Sora may not survive. At least, that's what DiZ told me."

_Why do I get the feeling that's not the only reason,_ mused Ember.

Out loud she said, "Is this DiZ that man with the red bandage Kalista told me about?"

Riku nodded.

"Well, did he tell you anything else that could help?"

He looked down for a moment. "Not really. The only other thing I can think of is that DiZ told me the reason the curse is placed on someone is because of something that happened in their past."

"Their past?"

"Yes, and he said the person with the curse was... innocent, but I'm not sure what that means." Riku looked straight at the redhead, "You said you've been with Kalista since you were kids, so you must know if something happened to her in the past to cause the curse, right?"

Ember grew silent. She looked at the floor, studying the design etched so delicately across it. She followed the design across the floor with her eyes. Then she saw the hole and many cracked pieces of the tower floor. Slowly, she moved off the railing and walked towards it. She bent down and inspected the many shattered tiles.

"This must have been where she fought the witch..." she whispered to herself, "looks like the past has come back to bite her more than once today."

"What are you talking about?" Asked Riku, who had walked over to her.

Ember was silent a little longer. Then, taking a breath, she stood up and looked at Riku. "What I'm about to tell you, Kalista won't want you to hear. It's true that her past is full of pain, and she's been trying to forget with everything that's in her. But if it helps rescue her from this curse, then I'll tell you."

Riku looked at her solemnly, waiting for her to continue.

Ember walked past him and once again sat on the handrail. She looked up at the moon, her eyes taking in the details of the portrait of night. Then she began.

"Kalista and I grew up together on the same world. I know it may seem hard to believe, what with our fighting skills and shifty ways, but both of us came from families of rich, powerful nobles. Kalista's family was by far was one of the most significant in society. She was the oldest of three girls, and as the heiress, she was very important. But because of her high status, she was only allowed to be around certain people who were also nobles. Luckily, I was one of them. So we were always close."

By this time, Ember seemed to have gone into her own world. She gave a small laugh, "Of course, you probably already know Kalista is not the type of bird who likes to be caged. Neither am I. We would sneak out of her palace window at night and run into the forests, pretending to go on adventures and battle dragons or meet sorcerers. It may sound dangerous, but we could handle ourselves pretty well. After all, I had an older cousin who taught us all sorts of unladylike things: boxing, sword fighting, archery, and the like. We had a lot of fun..."

Her expression darkened, "Then, a little more than a year ago, when we were around fifteen, Kalista met a boy named Shaymar. He was kind, street smart, and, I'm not going to lie, very good looking. He swept her off her feet in a minute. There was only one problem; he was a commoner. I know you don't understand this, but a noble and a commoner _do not_ mix. She kept it a secret for quite a while, running off to see him at night and things like that. Then, after a few months of this, Kalista decided to introduce Shaymar to her parents. She was convinced they'd understand. But when she told them, her father was furious. He gave her two options: get rid of the boy, or get out. He gave her a few days to make her choice.

During that time, Shaymar began acting... different. He became angry with his poor status and began resenting Kalista for her wealth and high standard. He starting having a desire for power, convinced that it would solve all his problems. I warned Kalista about his behavior, but she didn't listen to me."

Ember's hands gripped the railing, "Then one day Kalista went missing. A search party was sent out, and the next day they returned with her and Shaymar. Kalista was unconscious... and Shaymar was dead.

After Kalista woke up, she told me she was running away. She asked me to watch over her family, but I told her 'No way, because I'm coming with you.' So we left that world, made a few new friends, and together became a band of thieves."

The young girl looked at Riku, "It wasn't until months later that I learned what had happened the night Shaymar died. It turns out that he had taken Kalista to see a new "friend" of his, one he said would solve all their problems. The person turned out to be a woman named Maleficent. She told them about the heartless and the power of darkness. The moment they met, Kalista knew she was a witch with deadly intentions. She tried to convince Shaymar to leave, but he wouldn't listen to her. Apparently Maleficent gave him the darkness, but instead of making him stronger, it killed him. Kalista told me the darkness also attacked her, but for some reason, she made it out alive. We never saw or heard of that witch since."

Ember nodded towards the crushed floor, "That is, until today. Hollow Bastion was under attack with heartless, so Kalista came here to find the source, and it turned out to be Maleficent. You can see the after effect of the reunion."

Riku had been silent during the entire story. Suddenly he gave a half smile.

"What so funny?" asked Ember, knowing absolutely nothing in the story was funny at all.

"Nothing," he answered, "It's just...I mean about Maleficent. It's just...ironic..." He grew silent again.

"What is?" Insisted Ember, but Riku didn't answer her. By now, she was beginning to feel like coming here had been a waste of time, considering she barely knew any more than before.

_Still_, she thought, _at least I know him a little more now. That's something, I guess._

"So, what about you?" She asked, "Are you ever going to come out of hiding?"

He shot her a glance, "That's none of your business."

"Fair enough," she responded, and decided it was time to go. With silent grace, she leapt on one of the outer rims of the tower. She turned once more to Riku. "Well, it was nice meeting you. Catch ya later."

"Wait!" He said, "Are you... you're not going to tell Kalista or Sora about me, are you?"

"Do you want me to?"

"...No."

"Then I won't," Ember gave him a sideways glance, "but _you_ should."

With that, she jumped off the tower and glided down the castle walls.

* * *

* * *

**Yeah, I know, this chapter was nothing but talking. But at least Kalista's past if finally revealed!**

**Please review. I know it's probably annoying to hear that from every author whose stories you read, but it really does make my day.**


	17. Chapter 17: Flames of the Past

**Chapter 17**

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The morning sun blazed through the window onto Kalista's face. Squinting, she let out a moan and covered her eyes with her arm. But the light was relentlessly bright. Surrendering, Kalista decided to wake up and began to stretch. But her sore muscles reacted and made her wince.

_What happened? Why am I so sore?_

Then, slowly, the memories of the previous night started to sink in. She remembered fighting... nobodies? No, it was nobodies _and_ heartless. How had she beaten them all? That's right! Her curse had activated, and this time stronger than she'd ever felt before. And that face in the water... her face. The face of the curse in full effect, and the drained energy after it had subsided. Also, that cloaked figure; her guardian angel, as it were. He'd helped them defeat Xaldin, and now he'd saved her life!

Gently, Kalista eased herself into a sitting position. She hoped they wouldn't be going anywhere today. After all, they did just battle who knows how many heartless and nobodies the day before. No, they'd stay put for now, she was sure. It would be so nice just to rest...

"HEY KALISTA!!!!"

The voice was all too clearly Sora, yelling her name and banging on her door as usual. Groaning, Kalista collapsed back on the bed.

"Not now, Sora," she yelled back irritably.

Never taking no for an answer, Sora deliberately forced the door open, ran in to the room, and jumped on the bed. "Oh, good, you're awake!" he said cheerfully.

"No, I'm not!" Kalista retorted, pulling the covers over her head, "now go away."

Sora started bouncing up and down on the bed, jarring Kalista from side to side. "Come on!" he said in a whiny tone, "Cid said a gateway to a new world has opened, and we've got to go check it out."

"Then go and check it out," answered the green bed covers, "but I'm not coming."

"Pleeeeeeeeease."

"NO!"

"I'm not leaving this room until you do."

"Oh, I'm pretty sure you will." To scare him off, Kalista groped around the floor on the side of her bed, looking for her two sai.

"Kalista, you should really go." Another voice made her look up. At her doorway stood Ember, who just so happened to be holding Kalista's weapons.

"Em! That's so unfair," she said, aggravated that her best friend was taking Sora's side, and also for nipping her weapons.

"Fair or not, being in bed all day isn't good for you. You need to get out."

"But... uh! Fine!" With a huff, Kalista kicked Sora off her bed and got up herself. Looking down, she was amazed to find that she was already dressed. Hadn't she changed when she came back?... actually, come to think of it, how did she get back? Her cloaked rescuer had brought her outside the house, but how she got inside she didn't know.

"Kalista, you ok?" she snapped out of her thoughts to see Sora looking at her curiously.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine."

"Well then let's go!" He yelled, running out the door and barreling down the stairs.

Kalista rolled her eyes and started to follow.

"I was the one who brought you in."

"What?" she stopped in her tracks and looked at Ember.

"Last night, when you came back, I brought you back inside," answered Ember, "just in case you were wondering."

Kalista stared at her friend, sorting this out. "Wait, so does that mean you saw... that guy?"

Ember nodded. Kalista actually breathed a sigh of relief. "So I'm not imagining things."

"No, he's real alright."

"Do you have any idea who he is? Is he really part of the Organization?"

Ember looked at the floor, "Lista, you've got to trust me on this. There are some things going on that you'll have to learn for yourself. I can't tell you everything."

Kalista glared at Ember, "So you _do_ know."

"I didn't say that."

"But that's what you meant."

Ember sighed. "Kalista, please, just trust me, ok?"

Kalista couldn't believe this. Here was this mysterious guy who could either be her Saving Grace or some Nobody stalker, and her best friend knew the truth, but wouldn't tell her! Could she trust anyone anymore? But... this _was_ her best friend, and Ember would never keep a secret unless for some reason it was necessary.

"All right, I trust you."

Ember smiled and gave Kalista brief hug. "Don't worry," she said, "I'll help you find out how to stop that curse, I promise."

"Thanks Em."

"You're welcome. Now you better go before that "Keyblade Master" of yours starts pouting again."

Kalista laughed and went downstairs after Sora. She was still worried about the curse, but having a friend who knew her secret and offered to help eased her concern a great deal. And maybe this world they were headed to held some answers.

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"Hey, this place looks familiar."

"Really?" Kalista looked out the window of the gummi ship down to the world below. "Sora, what are you talking about? I've never seen this place before."

"This is Twilight Town!" shouted Goofy.

"Oh, yeah," agree Sora, "now I remember. This was where we wound up right after waking up in that chamber."

"Oh," was all Kalista said. _So they came here before they met me._

Donald carefully landed the gummi ship on the ground and everyone got out. Kalista followed the others, since they knew where they were going. As they entered the town, she looked around her. It really was a nice, charming place. There were shops on either side of the road and all the store owners wore smiles. They kept on walking until they reached place where the ocean could be seen. Kalista's eyes lit up and she ran over to the brick edge. The water, normally blue, was lit with many different colors as it reflected the sunset. She breathed in the warm salt air, enjoying the last bits of sun on her face.

"Sora, why is the sun setting? We just left this morning. Have we really been here that long?"

"No, it's just that the timing is different here. Pretty view, huh."

Kalista nodded. Suddenly, she saw a boy running towards them. He was short and stocky, and seemed to be out of breath. Sora also saw him, and seemed to recognize him.

"Hey guys, look, it's Pence! Hey Pence, over here!" He started waving frantically.

"Hey...S..Sora," said Pence once he'd reached them. After taking a moment to catch his breath, he continued. "I saw you guys down here, so I came to talk to you because I need to tell you something."

"Really, what is it?"

"There's a girl that just turned up here. She said she knew you. Her name's Kairi."

Everyone but Kalista gasped in surprise. "K...Ka...Kairi?!?" stuttered Sora, who started turning beet red.

Kalista had no idea what was going on. "Guys, what are you talking about? Who's Kairi?"

For once, Sora was completely silent, as though he was tongue tied. So Goofy took the liberty of answering instead. "Kairi is Sora's very special sweetheart."

"_What?!?_" said Kalista in shock.

"Goofy!" Sora, turning even redder, glared at his friend.

"What? It's true," responded poor Goofy, who for the life of him couldn't figure out why Sora was mad at him.

Kalista stared at Sora. "Sora, get out! You never told me you were with a girl. When did this happen?"

"I...I didn't think it was so import... I mean, I didn't know you wanted to kn... I don't know." By now he looked so embarrassed Kalista though he would jump over the brick wall. Of all people, Donald thankfully changed the subject.

"You said Kairi's here, right? So where is she?"

"Oh, she's at the Usual Spot with Hayner and Olette," answered Pence, "come on, I'll show you."

With that, he again started jogging back the way he had come. Everyone else followed closely behind. Kalista was still amazed that Sora had a girlfriend. _He hadn't said a thing about it before. You'd think he would have said something. Honestly, boys!_

After a few more minutes, they turned into an alleyway, where Pence slowed to a walk. Near the middle of the alley was a small, shack-like place. A girl with brown hair and green eyes stepped out of the entrance with a worried expression on her face. A boy also emerged with her.

"Hey, Olette, I found Sora." Said Pence.

Sora ran up to Olette. "Is Kairi here?" He asked anxiously.

"Oh, Sora, I'm so sorry," the girl seemed close to tears.

"Wh...what's wrong?" He asked.

"Well, just a little while ago, this girl...Kairi... came through some sort of strange portal of some kind. She told us about herself and how someone with red hair and black clothing was chasing her. She told us she knew you, so Pence went to go find you. But," Olette looked down, "when he was gone, another portal came out of nowhere. The same man that was chasing Kairi came out, grabbed her, and pulled her back through the portal. We tried to stop him, but he too strong."

When she was finished speaking, she looked at Sora, waiting for him to say something. But he didn't. He just stood there. Finally, he turned around to Donald, Goofy, and Kalista. He had a glint in his eyes that Kalista had never seen before. There was determination and...anger.

"We've got to find her," he said. All three nodded.

"But where do you think the organization guy went?" asked Donald, for they all knew it must be the Organization.

"The Organization's base. Where else? We find it, we find Kairi."

"But we've been looking for their base for a long time now," said Goofy.

"Then we'll just have to look harder." Without a backward, Sora began to walk out of the alley. The rest of them followed, leaving Hayner, Pence, and Olette behind.

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They were almost back to the ship now. Heading back through the town, Kalista was getting slightly worried. _I've never seen Sora like this before. This girl must really mean a lot to him. I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid._

Just then, she felt a strange sensation. It was like an unusual vibe hit her senses. It was too quiet. She could have sworn there was something dangerous nearby, because this was exactly how she felt when she was near an enemy. But for some reason, she didn't feel _near_ an enemy. They felt far away. But how was that possible?

Suddenly Kalista realized what she had been sensing. She was feeling the effects of a magic portal. Only this wasn't her portal, it was different. It must have been the one the Organization member used to kidnap Kairi! There were still remnants of it lingering in the air, and she could feel them. She and Ember had trained how to trace each others portals, so they could find each other if something went wrong.

_If I can trace Ember's portal, maybe I can trace this one!_ Kalista thought in revelation. She opened her mouth to tell her friends in front of her what she'd just discovered, but then clamped it shut._ Even if I trace the portal's destination, there's no way I could carry all of us to another world. I'd just kill myself trying. But the magic is already disappearing! I won't be able to find it if I wait. There's only one thing I can do: I'll have to go alone. _

Kalista made her decision. The first chance she got, she silently ducked behind a house while the others kept walking. Then she bolted back through the town using a different street. She ran all the way past the sunset view until she came to the alleyway and finally where Pence had led them. When she got there, the three kids had gone. She made her way into the hangout. It was very small, with just a couch and two chairs. Kalista moved through the room, trying to make out where the vibe was strongest. Once she had found it, she closed her eyes and focused. Putting her hands in front of her, she formed a portal of her own. Once it had taken shape, she slowly mixed it with the pieces of magic that still remaining from the earlier portal. Once it was ready, she pulled out her sai. Taking a deep breath, she stepped through.

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As she exited the liquid gateway, Kalista found herself in darkness. At first she thought she was in some world where it was night. But when her eyes adjusted, she recognized that she was in a forest. It actually wasn't that dark. In fact, she could see bits of light streaming through the trees. Making her way around the branches, she came to the edge of the forest. What greeted her was surprising. A little distance away, she could see quaint buildings and shops, a speedy trolley, and a glimpse of sunset past the rooftops.

"Wait a minute," Kalista thought out loud, "I'm still in Twilight Town?"

Suddenly, there was a noise in the woods behind her. Fast as lighting, Kalista ran behind a tree. Peering around it, she tried to see what made the noise. The forest trees cast long shadows, so it was hard to make anything out. But there! She saw something move. She drew her weapons closer as she saw a form emerge from behind a cluster of trees. They were wearing the signature black cloak, so she knew it was the Organization, and a guy by the looks of it.

Kalista's mind reeled. Should she try to take him on herself? What if he wasn't even the one who took Kairi? The figure was standing with their back to her. _I may not get another opportunity,_ she thought, _this is my only chance._

She stepped out from behind the trees. "You," said Kalista, pointing one of her sai in her enemy's direction, "don't move. Now why don't you save me the trouble, play nice, and give back the girl."

The figure didn't move. Then, he shrugged his shoulders. "What makes you think I have her? And if I did, what makes you think I'd give her back?" he said in a mocking tone. His voice made Kalista flinch. Why did that voice sound so... familiar?

"Maybe the thought of a sharp metal object sticking out of your back would change your mind," replied Kalista coldly.

"Mmm, I like 'em fierce."

"Shut up," said Kalista, running out of patience, "If you're not going to hand over Kairi, then you'll have to fight me. Oh, and I prefer to know the name of the person I'm about kill."

The cloaked figure chuckled. Slowly, he reached up and pulled his hood down. Kalista saw fiery red hair reach past his shoulders. "Axel's the name," he said, turning around to face her, "Pyro fanatic's the game..." suddenly he stopped short. He looked closely at Kalista, curiosity sparking in his eyes.

"Wait. Have... have I met you... before?" He asked, looking confused. "I don't think I've ever seen you... but, you look so... familiar. Hey, are you ok?"

The sai pointed in his direction was shaking uncontrollably; as was the girl holding it. Her eyes had gone wide, and her breathing had stopped.

Kalista wanted to scream. She didn't believe what she was seeing. The curse, heartless, nobodies, Maleficent, and now... it was all a terrible nightmare! Just like the ones she always had. But this time, she couldn't wake up.

"It...can't be...you can't be...NO!"

Kalista tore her eyes away and ran out of the forest.

"Hey, wait! Come back! Who are you?!"

But she barely heard the voice behind her. She ran blindly through the streets, running into people all along the way. Everything was buzzing around her. She tried forming a portal, but her concentration was lost. She kept on running. She ran and ran through Twilight Town, until at last she collapsed on the ground in a place she could only numbly assume was a train station.

She lay there, panting and sweating from her race against herself. Again she felt tears push up against the back of her eyes, but they couldn't form.

"It...can't be," she repeated to herself in a whisper, "It just can't be you... Shaymar."

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**  
Thanks so much to everyone who reads, reviews or both! You guys rock!**

**Until next time**


	18. Chapter 18: Pieces to the Puzzle

Chapter 18

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"Kalista? Kalista, can you hear me? Wake up," a voice from far off somehow found its way through the thick, foggy barrier of Kalista's subconscious, and she felt a hand gently shaking her shoulder. Opening her eyes, she took in her surroundings. She was on the floor at the train station, which meant she was still in Twilight Town. But by now the sunset was gone and stars had filled up the ebony sky. She looked to see who had woken her. It was Sora, looking very different from the last time she saw him. Instead of steely eyes, they were full of worry. Donald and Goofy were on either side of him, staring at her intently.

"H...hey guys," Kalista barely mustered. She still felt slightly detached from reality, so speaking seemed difficult.

"Are you alright?" asked Sora, "We headed back to the gummi ship, but when we got there, you were gone. We've spent the last few hours looking for you. What happened?"

Kalista didn't want to answer. She certainly wasn't going to tell him what had really happened. She wasn't about to tell him that the guy who kidnapped his girlfriend was actually a ghost that had come back from hell to haunt her. But that wasn't the only reason she didn't want to answer. She was ashamed; she had failed her friend because she couldn't stare her own demons in the face, much less fight them. But, seeing the look Sora was giving her forced her to speak. She'd abandoned them, they went looking for her, and they were worried. She owed them an explanation.

"Sora... I... I'm so sorry," Kalista finally said.

"Why?" he asked, confused.

"I... I realized that I could trace the Organization member's portal and follow him, but I didn't have enough strength to carry everyone, so I went alone. I didn't tell you because I knew you'd be angry, and I couldn't waste time. I was able to follow him, but he didn't have Kairi with him. I tried to fight him, but...he got away."

The last part had been a lie. _She_ had gotten away from _him_. Kalista glanced at Sora, waiting for his response. She was waiting for him to be mad, to yell at her and tell her what an idiot she was for going alone, not telling them, and letting the kidnapper escape. She didn't expect anything less for what she'd done. But instead, and to Kalista's amazement, she felt Sora's arms rap her in a tight hug.

"You're sure you're ok?" he asked.

Kalista was deeply moved by his concern. She never realized how much he actually cared for her as a friend. And, moreover, she cared about him, too. She hugged him back.

"No lie; I've been better," she answered.

Sora laughed as he released his hold, "At least you're honest."

Kalista smiled. However, the warm moment was interrupted by a shouting Donald.

"Sora! Look!" he was yelling. At the same instant, a loud horn erupted. Everyone looked in the direction of the noise. Out of the tunnel leading into the station came the most unusual train Kalista had ever seen. It was blue and covered with white shapes of stars and moons. It came to a complete stop in front of them, and again blasted its whistle for all to hear.

"What on earth?" wondered Kalista out loud.

"Hey, wait a minute," said Sora, standing up and walking over to the train, "isn't this the train that took us to Yen Sid?"

"Yep, it looks just like it," agreed Donald.

"Yen Sid? Who's that?" asked Kalista.

"He's a wise and powerful sorcerer," explained Goofy, "in fact, King Mickey was once his apprentice."

Sora was still inspecting the train, when suddenly the door slid open. Entering, he spied a note lying on one of the seats. He picked it up and looked at it.

"Hey, Kalista, I think it's for you," he said, running back outside with the letter. He handed it to her, and she curiously read through it:

_Hey Lista,_

_Guess what! I re-contacted my old potions teacher and asked him about you're whole situation. He said he actually does have the prophesy and wants to talk to you in person about it. This train (by the way, isn't it adorable) will take you to his tower. Tell those dorky friends of yours I said hi._

_Ember_

Kalista couldn't believe her eyes. Ember had actually done it! She'd found the prophesy for her, and now Kalista could get closer to figuring out how to cure the curse. Who knows; maybe this Yen Sid could cure her tonight! How ironic that Sora, Donald, and Goofy already knew this guy, she just didn't know it. It actually kind of bugged her.

"Well, what's it say?" asked Donald impatiently.

Kalista snapped out of thought. Suddenly it occurred to her that her friends had no idea what was going on with her. But she still didn't want to tell them. "Oh, it's from Ember. It says...uh... that Yen Sid was her old potion teacher, and that he wants to see us, so we should take this train."

"Well then what are we waiting for?" shouted Sora. Grabbing Kalista by the arm, he pulled her into the train. Donald and Goofy followed quickly as the door started to shut behind them. Then, with another horn blow, the train began to move.

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The ride went smoothly as the train chugged down the tracks towards a distant part of Twilight Town. Sora was at the front of the passenger car, talking excitedly about how Yen Sid had probably figured out where the Organization's base was and how they'd all go, rescue Kairi, and save everyone from darkness. Goofy was hanging on his every word, and Donald was leaning back in his seat, pretending not to listen.

Kalista, however, was sitting near the rear of the car. She stared out the window at the passing landscapes that were lit only by moonlight. Sora's endless chatter faded away as she became lost in her thoughts again.

She didn't fully understand what happened to her just a few hours ago. She didn't really want to think about it, but she knew she had to. This was too important to ignore, no matter how painful. It just didn't make any sense. _Shaymar is dead_, Kalista thought, _so why was he standing right in front of me, and in an Organization cloak? _She thought back to what King Mickey had told them about heartless and nobodies. _He said that when a person's heart is consumed by darkness, both a heartless and nobody result. Could it be...could it be that that guy was Shaymar's nobody? _The idea was shocking, but it fit perfectly.

But the thing that scared Kalista most wasn't that she'd seen her old lover's nobody. It was that when she saw him, she didn't feel horror. Well, she did, certainly, but that wasn't all. She felt something... else, too. Kalista gripped the seat in anger. _But that's insane_, she practically hissed at herself, _I can't have feelings for a nobody; they're evil, right? They don't even have hearts! But... why did he have to look just like Shaymar? What am I going to do if I see him again?_

"Hey guys! We're here!" a shout from Sora brought Kalista out of her musing. She looked out the window, and sure enough, she saw a tall, gleaming tower that stretched high into the clouds. Gripping the seat one last time, she stood up and followed the others, who were already making their way to the entrance.

"Wow," said Kalista when she got to the tall double doors. There were so many designs and engravings all up and down the doors, she was sure nothing short of magic could make something so refined. Sora knocked on one of the doors, and instantly it swung open. Apparently this was normal, because the three of them walking right in and she followed. They began walking up a long flight of stairs. They kept walking... and walking... and walking.

Eventually Kalista couldn't help but grumble, "If he's such a great magician, you'd think he'd be able to install an elevator."

Finally, they reached the end of the stairway and entered a blue and green room. But they weren't the only ones there. In front of them stood...actually, hovered... three winged ladies; one in a green dress, one in blue, and one in pink.

"Why, if it isn't Sora, Donald, and Goofy!" happily said all three of them in unison.

"Flora! Fauna! Merryweather!" said Sora, running up to them, "It's great to see all you guys again."

"Without a doubt," said Merryweather, the one in the blue dress, "when we heard you were coming, we just couldn't wait to see how you were doing."

"Well, we're doing great," answered Sora cheerfully. Then he gestured to Kalista, "We even picked up a new friend. Everyone, this is Kalista."

"How do you do?" the fairies again said in unison.

"Very well, thank you," she responded.

"So, you're the one that red haired Ember girl was talking about," said the fairy in the pink dress, "the one who Yen Sid needs to speak to, am I correct?"

"Oh, yeah, I guess so," this was the part Kalista had been dreading. How was she supposed to get Sora and the others to leave her alone with this sorcerer? She was sure they would be suspicious.

As she expected, Sora turned to Flora slightly confused, "Huh? What do you mean Yen Sid needs to talk to Kalista? I thought he wanted to see all of us?"

"Well, that's certainly not what I heard," the floating pixie answered.

Sora eyed Kalista intently, "Kalista, what is she talking about?"

Kalista looked down at her feet. _Great,_ she thought, _how do I explain myself now? I almost wish I'd told him earlier what was going on with me. Now what do I do?_

Donald and Goofy were now looking at her as well, waiting for her response to this puzzling situation.

"Uh... well, I...um..."

"Ah, Kalista, there you are."

All eyes in the room turned. There, in the doorway, stood a tall, wise looking man. He looked well along in years, as he had a long white beard and hair. He was dressing in a deep blue robe, and a pointy, star-decorated hat adorned his head. As he entered the room, everyone gave a respectful bow. Afterwards, Sora was the first to speak.

"It's great to see you again, Yen Sid."

"Indeed, Sora, indeed," the man answered. However, his eyes where still fixed on Kalista. He walked over to her; his robe gliding along behind him. He stopped right in front of her. She felt like she should say something, but she didn't know what.

"You are Kalista, I presume?" he asked her.

"Uh, yes, I am."

"Well, then, I would be most obliged if you would accompany me to the tower's astronomy room." With that, he turned and headed out the door. Kalista, slightly dumbfounded, glanced around the room, uncertain of what she should do. When she looked at Sora, it seemed he had finally had enough.

"Yen Sid! Wait!" he yelled.

The sorcerer stopped and turned to him. "I don't understand," Sora continued, "what's going on? Why..."

"Sora, may I ask you something?" said Yen Sid suddenly.

"Uh, of course."

"This girl," he said, meaning Kalista, "is she your friend?"

"Yes," Sora answered, confused since, if Kalista was with them, she was obviously their friend.

"Do you trust her?"

"Of course I do."

"And are there things about your past, about yourself, that she doesn't know about?"

"Well... yes. I suppose there are."

"So, do you think it would be alright not to know everything about _her_, and trust that she will tell you in time?"

Sora finally understood what he was getting at. He looked at Donald and Goofy, then at Yen Sid to Kalista. She gave him a pleading look, as if saying _I'm sorry about leaving you in the dark, but please try and understand_. She swore she saw him roll his eyes.

"I guess so," he said with a hint of aggravation.

Yen Sid gave a small smile. "Good," he said, and continued out the door.

Kalista was so proud of Sora she could hug him. But instead she gave him a thank-you smile and quickly followed behind the magician.

"Wait a minute," she heard Donald squawk behind her, "_I_ still want to know what's going on!"

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"Now, this is just a guess, but I'm presuming you haven't told anyone about the curse, have you?"

"Oh, looks like wisdom and humor go together, huh," said Kalista.

She had followed Yen Sid to a large room that was filled with books and all sorts of strange objects. Many of them were telescopes, so she assumed the rest were also tools having to do with star gazing. It was certainly a good place for looking at the stars. They must have been at the highest place in the tower, because the roof had been taken off (if it had ever been there in the first place) and above them was nothing but a vast sky lined with thousands of the heavenly lights. Interestingly enough, even though there was no roof and the sky was very bright, lamps still lit the room.

"So it would seem," answered the sorcerer. He made his way over to a large table which, unlike the other cluttered parts of the room, had nothing on it. Nothing, that is, except a hefty, old looking book. He sat down and opened the book, carefully flipping through the pages. It's binding was almost broken, and the pages were worn and faded. Finally, he came to near the middle of the book and stopped flipping. He looked up at Kalista.

"My old student, Ember, told me about your predicament. Since you two are close friends, and she was one of my greatest students, I agreed to help with what I could. But I'm afraid I know very little about this curse, and I will tell you right know there's very little chance of me being able to cure you in any way. The only thing I can offer is this," he put his hand on the book page, "this is the prophesy that tells of the one with the Heartless Curse. When Ember told me of your symptoms, I linked it to this. I can not be absolutely sure it's the correct prophesy, but I am very confident that it is."

He got up out of the seat, motioning Kalista to take his place. Slowly, with growing excitement and anxiety, she sat down and looked at the open book. The writing was elaborate, but still practical enough for her to read the words.

It read:

_When the Vanquisher of Darkness  
__Is released from his prison  
__Then the Heartless Curse will take hold  
__Of an innocent person_

_These two hearts shall war against evil  
__But will fight a losing battle  
__For the darkness inside them is their true enemy  
__Their pasts are their cause and doom_

_The heart with the curse is in grave danger  
__For as time goes on it will overpower its victim  
__Giving them strength but taking them over  
__Until nothing is left but nightmares  
__  
The Vanquisher fights his shadows  
__But they are not just in front of him  
__They are behind, below, above, inside  
__Just waiting for him to let down his guard_

_Only when these two come together  
__And share a sacred bond  
__Can they hope to defeat the darkness  
__They can only save each other, not themselves  
_

As she finished reading, Kalista was silent.

"Does it seem correct to you?" asked Yen Sid.

"Well yes, it does," she answered, more to herself then him, "in fact, it fits exactly. At least the part about me does. I can certainly say that something in my past may have been the reason for the curse. And it describes the curse perfectly; when it takes me over, I become incredibly powerful, but at the same time, I feel like I'm loosing control of myself. And I'm no stranger to nightmares either. But..."

She looked at him, "the other part doesn't make any sense. The part about the Vanquisher of Darkness. Obviously it should be Sora. I mean, I've been fighting the heartless and nobodies with him and the others, and he's the Keyblade Master, for crying out loud. No one else is more of a "vanquisher of darkness" then him. And we've even become good friends. That's the sacred bond part, right? So that all fits."

Yen Sid was quiet, waiting for her to continue.

She looked back down at the book. "But there are other parts that don't fit at all. For one thing, if the incident that happened in my past really was what cursed me, then it happened around a year ago. But Sora told me he was released from his sleep chamber only a couple months ago. So that doesn't work. Also, Sora's character and the "vanquisher's" character don't match at all. It says the Vanquisher is surrounded by darkness and shadows, but they're _his own_. If anyone had darkness inside them to deal with, it wouldn't be Sora.

And one more thing: if Sora and I are the ones in this prophesy, the curse should be lifted by now. Because once we're together, we'll defeat each other's darkness. But," she stared at the sorcerer hopelessly, "I'm still cursed."

"Then perhaps Sora is not the one in the prophesy," he answered.

"But who else could it be?"


	19. Chapter 19: A Redeeming Act

---Chapter 19---

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"Come on already! What'd he talk to you about?"

"Donald, for the last time, leave her alone."

Sora and Donald continued arguing as the magical train pulled to a stop. They were heading back from Yen Sid's Tower, and Donald had relentlessly been trying to probe information out of Kalista. She, however, remained silent the entire time; too engrossed in her own thoughts to even hear the duck's constant investigation.

"What? You want to know too, don't you?" Donald shot back, determined to understand the strange errand they'd just been on.

Sora glanced back at Kalista, who was looking at the window, acting like she wasn't listening to what he said next. "Maybe I do," he admitted, "but right now it's none of our business. If and when Kalista wants to tell us, she'll tell us."

Kalista silently thanked him for being so understanding. Sora just smiled and proceeded to exit the train, the rest of them following. As they made their way down the paved, sloping road, Kalista was surprised to see a familiar sight. The boy they had met before, Pence, was once again running toward them. But this time, Hayner and Olette were with him.

Kalista opened her mouth to greet them, but Olette spoke before she could. "Oh, you found her! I'm so glad! We've been looking everywhere and hadn't found a trace."

"Oh... right," said Sora, as if he'd just remembered something. He turned to Kalista, "When you went missing, we asked Hayner, Pence, and Olette if they'd help us find you, since they know the town better than we do."

Kalista could tell that Sora was feeling pretty embarrassed, considering he must have forgotten about them trying to find her, while they went off to Yen Sid's. He quickly recovered, however, and continued the conversation.

"Yeah, well, we found her, and she's just fine," he said cheerily.

"That's good," said Pence, "I was beginning to worry that we'd never find her. We headed this way because it was the last place we had looked. I'm serious, we went all over Twilight Town." He stretched his arms out to help visualize his story, "we combed everywhere from the clock tower all the way to the Old Mansion. I'm telling you, we were about to give up..."

Pence stopped abruptly. He realized that Kalista was grabbing onto his arm; her eyes sparked with interest. "Wait a minute. Did you just say you went to a place called the "Old Mansion"?"

"Uhh, yeah," answered Pence, confused as to why this bit of info was so important to the girl in front of him.

Kalista cocked her head to the side. "Where is that, exactly?"

"Um, just outside of town, past the woods. Why?"

"Could you take us there?"

Pence looked at Sora, who had no more idea to his friend's actions than anyone else at the moment. Finally, and with a hint of a sigh, Sora shrugged and nodded for Pence lead on.

"Well, sure. Follow me."

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As they walked near the edge of town, Kalista's anticipation grew. She tried very hard not to get her hopes up, but she couldn't help it. _What if this "Old Mansion" is the same one that Riku took me too after we fought? I had no idea what world it resided in, and I never went outside because I used a portal to escape. If it is that same place, that means Riku and the guy he was working for could still be there! _

She didn't know exactly what would happen once they met again. It would probably be very awkward for the two of them. But at least Sora would be able to meet his old friend again. And who knew, maybe that older man knew some more about the curse. She could only dare to hope.

When they reached the woods, Kalista hesitated, remembering that this was where she'd met... him. But as they traveled through, she realized there would be no way he'd still be there. They reached the other side of the forest, and there it stood. It was indeed old, and definitely a mansion. Nevertheless, she still didn't know if it was the same one.

"Here we are," said Pence.

"Thanks so much," answered Kalista, "now let's go." Swiftly taking hold of Sora shirt, she walked through the gate and up to the building. She continued to drag him through the door, despite his many protests of the rough treatment. The others, knowing nothing else to do, sped after them.

"Kalista, what has gotten into you? Let go!" Sora kept trying to loosen her hold on his shirt. Suddenly, he didn't need to, for her hand unexpectedly pulled away. They were now standing in the middle of the entrance hall. A wide, tiled floor stretched before them, and two winding staircases went to an upper level. Above them was an old yet grand looking chandelier. Sora stared dumbly at his friend, wondering why she always had to act possessed. She stood in the very center of the floor, as if taking the surroundings in.

"Kalista," he said, finally getting annoyed, "what's going on?"

She turned back to him, "Sora, this is the place."

"What do you mean?"

"I've been here before."

"Really?" asked Sora confused, but happy she was actually answering him, "When? I don't remember coming here before."

"It was before I met you." All of a sudden, Kalista looked towards a door to her left. "Come on, this way." She ran up to the door and opened it, with Sora at her heels. As she entered the room, she started glancing all over the place, like she was looking for something.

"What are you doing?" Sora asked. He didn't know why this room was so special. It looked pretty normal to him.

"Found you!" he heard her yell. She pulled out a book from the shelf. In an instant, the middle of the floor vanished, and in its place was a staircase. Without a word as to how she had done it, Kalista continued down the stairs. Naturally, he went with her.

Kalista was practically bubbling with excitement. She couldn't even figure out why she felt like this to begin with. She reached the final door, and cautiously opened it. Inside, she saw the familiar six computer screens, buzzing blue. But nobody was there. Kalista walked in and looked around. As she inspected the room, she could see a great deal of dust on the chairs, proving this place had been abandoned some time ago. The eagerness inside her took a dramatic plunge in her stomach, and she sat down dejectedly in the chair facing the computers.

_They're gone_, she thought hopelessly, _and I have no idea where they went._ She gripped the sides of the chair.

"Wow, what is this place?" asked Sora, looking all around the room, and then finally letting his gaze rest on Kalista.

"It doesn't really matter anymore," she answered, not looking at him, "There used to be people here who I thought... could help us... but they're gone now. I should have known they wouldn't be here. What a fool's errand."

"Aw, don't beat yourself up like that." Kalista looked up and saw that the others had caught up with her and Sora. Goofy was still speaking, "You were just trying to find help. It's not your fault your friends up and moved."

"Yeah," agreed Sora, "Don't worry about it. Whoever they are, I'm sure we can find them."

Kalista gave a small smile, "I hope you're right."

During this time, Pence had come over to Kalista. He began inspecting the computers, and the curiosity in his face was evident. "Hey Kalista, would you mind moving over so I can sit down?"

"Oh, sure," Kalista dutifully got out of the chair for him. He sat down and started typing away at the keypad. The others in the room watched and waited for him to explain what he was doing. After a few minutes, he looked back at them.

"This is a very intricate code," Pence said, "there seems to be something of importance hidden in here, but the computer seems to be locked down. I think we need a password to get in."

"A password?" asked Donald.

"Yeah... oh, wait, here it is!" Suddenly, on the middle screen appeared three lines of text. Strangely enough, they were all names of ice cream.

"What do you think those mean?" wondered Goofy.

"One of these must be the password," explained Pence. He glanced at the others, "do you guys have any idea what the answer is."

Hayner and Olette shook their heads. Donald and Goofy shook their heads. Kalista looked at the options again. She had never heard of any of these ice cream flavors before, and she had no clue what they meant, much less which answer was right. She shook her head as well. _Well, I guess nobody knows..._

"It's the middle one."

Everyone in the room looked at Sora. He had been staring at the monitors the whole time, as if he was looking through them. His abrupt answer seemed to startle even himself.

"The middle one," he repeated, "Sea-Salt Ice Cream. That's the answer."

"How do you know?" asked Donald.

"I... I'm not really sure," Sora answered, looking a little confused, "I just... know. I'm not sure how, I just do."

"But just "knowing" isn't good enough," Donald insisted stubbornly, "we've only got one shot at this, and we have to get it right."

"But none of us have any other idea," Kalista challenged, "Sora's the only one with a guess, and he seems pretty sure about it, so we might as well try it." She didn't really know how Sora knew this random answer; she wasn't even sure what would happen if they got it right or wrong. But what did they have to lose, anyway?

"All right, then here we go." Pence selected the middle answer on the glowing panel.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, out of no where, a black portal appeared in the corner of the room. Upon reflex, most of them drew their weapons, waiting for some kind of attack. But nothing happened. The portal just stood there, like liquid glass swirling in never ending movements.

Cautiously, Kalista walked toward the portal, her weapons still in hand. After looking it over, she came to a conclusion.

"It seems to be a "travel to" portal," she said to the others, "the kind that takes you to places, not the kind that takes someone here from somewhere else, if you follow me."

"So, wait a second. Do you mean this portal will take us somewhere if we enter it?" asked Sora.

"That's what it looks like to me."

For a moment Sora hesitated. After all, no one was sure if this portal was safe; it could easily be a trap by the Organization. But when else could they get this chance?

Finally, Sora looked back at Hayner, Pence, and Olette. "Thank you guys so much for your help."

"No problem," Hayner and Pence answered, and Olette gave them a big smile.

Sora looked at Donald and Goofy, then finally to Kalista. "Ready?" he asked, clutching his Keyblade.

Kalista gave a small smirk and raised a sai to her face. "Always."

With that, all four of them entered the portal, and to wherever it led.

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"What is this place?" asked Donald.

He had good reason to ask. It certainly wasn't normal. Everything was spinning lights and shades of green, purple, black, and other colors. It looked like they were in a giant kaleidoscope.

"I think we're still inside the portal," answered Kalista.

"But don't portals usually lead you straight to the next place you're going?" inquired Goofy.

"Usually, yes. I'm not sure why we're stuck here. I can't even see the exit..."

"Kalista, look out!"

Kalista glanced behind and saw three nobodies lunging at her. Without warning, Sora pushed her to the side and sliced his keyblade through them all at once. But no sooner had he done so than two more nobodies emerged behind him. However, before they could attack, lighting appeared above them and struck them down.

"Take that!" yelled Donald.

"Look out, there's more!" shouted Sora.

Multiple nobodies began to surface and attack. A group of them went after Donald, but Goofy used his shield as a boomerang and took them out before they did any damage. Kalista saw a long line of them try and steak up on Sora, who was hacking down his circling enemies like weeds. Aiming one of her sai, she threw it with perfect accuracy and watched it shoot through the line of nobodies, each one disappearing when they were hit.

Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her leg. She looked down and saw that a nobody had latched itself onto her, and was cutting into her skin. She drove her remaining weapon through its head, causing it to vanish. But in its place was a giant gash in her flesh. Luckily, she didn't have much time to worry, because a trio of green bells appeared over her, and the wound instantly healed. Kalista turned to see Donald giving her a thumbs-up sign. Kalista smiled her thanks.

But she didn't smile for long. They were destroying many nobodies, but each one they killed, two more took their place.

"Sora," Kalista yelled, "this isn't going to work! The nobodies keep coming, and we have no way to escape. They're going to wear us out, and then finish us off."

"I'm well aware of the hopeless situation, Kalista," Sora yelled back, "but what else can we do but keep fighting?"

Kalista didn't have time to answer (not that she had a helpful one). A large group of nobodies had surrounded her, blocking her from her friends. Thinking fast, she drove her recently retrieved sai into the ground. The nobodies around her immediately froze over. Kalista fell on the ground and covered herself as the new ice blocks shattered and shards flew everywhere. She got up slowly, realizing the magic had taken quite a toll on her.

_This is hopeless,_ she thought in desperation, _it doesn't matter how much we fight, we'll eventually lose our strength. We were such idiots to come here. We've got to get out._

Kalista felt a heavy weight on her back. So heavy that she fell onto her face. She looked back and saw another batch of nobodies on top of her, pinning her down. She tried to get them off, but there were too many. One of the creatures was staring into her face. For a second, it just stared. Then, it opened its mouth wide and revealed rows of long, sharp teeth. Kalista let out a short scream, knowing what was coming...

CRACK

The nobody exploded into flames. Kalista just gaped at where her former enemy had just been standing. What just happened? All of a sudden, the rest of the nobodies holding her down burst into flames, just like the one before. Then they disappeared. Kalista laid on the ground, panting and trying figure out what had just occurred. Suddenly she saw a hand appear in front of her. Not caring who it was, she gratefully took hold of it and the person helped her up. She opened her mouth to thank them... but it wasn't a "thank you" that came out.

Instead, she gasped.

"Nice to see you again, too."

"Axel?! What are you doing here?" Sora had appeared beside Kalista, and was now pointing his keyblade toward the Organization member in distrust.

"Well, well, that's a pleasant way to thank the guy who just saved your friend's life."

Kalista turned to Sora in shock. "Sora... you know Axel?"

Sora gave her a puzzled look, "Wait, how do _I_ know him? How do _you_ know him?"

"He's the one who kidnapped Kairi."

"What?!" Sora turned again to Axel, but he was gone. Suddenly an explosion happened behind the two of them. They turned and saw a mass of nobodies fall to the ground. Beyond them, Axel was dusting his hands off. He glanced at them.

"Hey, since when do I have to explain myself to anyone? I'm helping, aren't I? Be grateful. Besides, it's more fun this way."

The moment he stopped speaking, at least fifty more nobodies appeared and charged in their direction. Not having time to argue any longer, Sora sprinted to Axel's side, and the two of them met their enemies in a head on collision. Donald and Goofy, who must have had opinions on the recent matter but kept them silent, joined in.

Kalista, on the other hand, held back. She knew she should help, but her legs were frozen in place. _Come on, move,_ she told herself, _I've got to fight with them. It doesn't matter what happened in the past. I can't let that control me. This is the present, and I have to MOVE!_

She ran straight into a pile of nobodies that had risen behind Goofy. Slashing at them with her sai, she danced in and out of them, matching their movements and beating them at their own game. Finally, the last one was gone. She looked up to see how the others were doing. Her heart sank. Even with Axel's help, their enemies' numbers weren't getting any fewer. And they were getting worn out.

She watched as Sora jumped into the air, carrying a large amount of nobodies with him. Spinning in lightning fast circles, he swung out his blade and cut through his helpless rivals till every one had vanished. Then he landed back on the ground, breathing hard. Axel, who had been watching him, grinned and shook his head.

"Not bad, Sora. But watch this."

Axel closed his eyes, lifted his head, and let out a piercing yell. Slowly, he was lifted into the air by some unseen force. Then, like lighting from the sky, bolts of fire shot down by the hundreds, searing the nobodies, one after another. The flames were everywhere, bright red and scorching hot. Kalista realized this was an extremely deadly attack, and ran over to Sora, Donald, and Goofy, who where clumped together, trying to avoid the blazing heat strikes. Muttering a spell, she placed a shield of water over the four of them.

A few minutes later, the fire storm stopped. Kalista lifted the spell and looked at the surroundings in amazement. The place looked untouched, just like when they had first arrived. And there was not a single nobody to be found.

"He... actually did it," whispered Donald in wonder.

Kalista searched the scene for Axel, and saw him a ways off from them. She felt a cold chill go up her spine.

_Oh no..._

He was lying on the ground, and she saw darkness breaking away from his body. Not stopping to think, Kalista ran over to him, the others close behind her. Sora actually beat her there. He fell on his knees next to his new fallen comrade.

"Axel, are you alright? What happened?"

Axel just looked at him and gave a small laugh. "Well, I guess this is what happens when you put your entire being into an attack."

Kalista walked to the other side of Axel and kneeled down beside him. After looking him over, she realized this was exactly how she'd seen all other Organization members look... before they died. She saw Sora give her a pleading look, as if asking her if there was anything they could do. But she shook her head.

"Axel..." Sora began.

"Don't... don't worry about me," Axel said before he could continue, "Sora, I'm sorry about taking Kairi. I didn't mean for her to get hurt, but the Organization took her. They're holding her at their base right now. This portal will lead you there," as he spoke, a dark portal formed a little ways away from them. Sora looked back at the dying man before them.

"Axel, why?"

Axel closed his eyes, "To tell you the truth, I wanted to see Roxas again. He... he was the only one who made me feel like I had a heart." He opened his eyes and looked at Sora, "It's funny. You sort of make me feel that same way."

Then his gaze shifted to Kalista, "And you, there's something about you. I feel like I know you. I feel like we're close... almost like..." Slowly, Axel lifted his hand and gently brushed it across her face, "If I could feel, I think it would be regret, because I can't know you... I lost my chance. But... at least I was able to save you... that's got to count for something..."

Kalista's heart felt like it would explode. This was too much. She wanted this to stop, right now. Seeing him here, falling away into darkness. It was all far too familiar. Like another bad dream; only this time, it was far more real. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore.

"No, Axel, no!" she grabbed his hand, "please, don't die! I... I can't watch you die again. Not again, please!"

Suddenly, she felt a finger against her lips. Axel was looking at her with amusement. "Again? Sweetheart, I think you're confusing me with someone else." Then, a mischievous glint lit up his eyes. "Still, one can always pretend..."

In the blink of an eye, he pushed himself up off the ground and pressed his mouth against Kalista's. She was so shocked, she couldn't move. She just sat there, feeling the warmth of his lips aligned with her's. For one brief moment they stayed there, fixed in the kiss. Then, Axel fell back to the ground, and his eyes closed. In one more moment, he was gone.

Kalista stared at the place where he had lain. Memories from her past whirled around in her head; memories that always caused her such pain. And yet, for some reason, they didn't seem to hurt quite as much. One main thought went through her mind. _I got to see Shaymar one last time. And this time, he didn't die a selfish fool. This time... he died doing the right thing._

Then she did something that surprised herself. She smiled.

"Um... Kalista?" she heard Sora ask.

She looked up to see three very confused looking faces.

"Did I miss something?"

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**Yeah, I know the exact way they get to The World That Never Was is different than the game. But it makes it more interesting, I think. **

**I think it's so funny how my chapters started really short and now they've grown to an insane length. I guess I just started liking longer chapters. Whatever. Review, review!**


	20. Chapter 20: Enemy's Stronghold

Chapter 20

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The sky showed black in the dead of night. It stretched across the heavens, covering all remembrance of the sun. It was raining, so no stars could be seen in the giant blanket of darkness. Only an occasional flash of lightning gave the black portrait any color. Yet a great measure was hidden behind rows and rows of skyscraping buildings. Of the windows ordaining the countless dwellings, none were lit; portraying that no one lived there at all. Strangely enough, in the dark streets that lay further on, were neon signs too far away to read. Flickering on and off, they only added to the feeling this place was completely void of life. Finally, back up in the sky, above and beyond the houses and dull colored beams, hung a white, luminous moon. Any moon as beautiful would be a wondrous sight, but even more for this particular one. For when else has a moon taken on the shape of a glimmering heart?

"Wow," said Donald, but only in a whisper.

"What is this place?" asked Kalista.

"This is world of the Organization," answered a voice behind them. The four of them turned to see none other than King Mickey standing next to them. He stared solemnly at the scene before him. Kalista was about to ask how the king had found them here, but Sora spoke first.

"Axel said that Kairi's being held at their base," he told the king.

"Well, then we better find a way to get into that castle," Mickey answered with a nod.

At first Kalista didn't know what he was talking about, but when she looked back out across the streets, she understood. There, just beneath the moon, stood a fortress a far distance away. The rays of the moon showered down on it, causing it to give off a pale, eerie glow. Without another word to them, the king ran off in the direction of the moon.

Sora hesitated for a moment, and then started walking down the dark street, followed by the others. Kalista stayed close behind him, weapons clutched at her side, wary of the slightest movement in the shadows. If this was Organization XIII's world, who knew what could be waiting in the darkness?

They made their way past the buildings and monotonous florescent lights. The moon was no ordinary moon; it was like a beacon of unearthly light. Kalista wondered vaguely why it was shaped the way it was, and if it was important in any way.

Finally, they came to an opening in the street. There were no buildings here, except for one lone skyscraper. As they gazed up at it through the rain, Kalista couldn't help but feel like something had once happened here; something of significance. She turned to Sora to voice her feelings, and to ask him if he sensed the same thing.

"Hey, Sora, doesn't this place... Sora?!"

Sora was still staring up at the tower, as if he hadn't heard her. But that's not what startled Kalista. Sora had turned transparent! She could see right through him to the buildings on the other side, as if he was a ghost! Donald and Goofy saw it, too.

"Sora, are you ok?" asked Goofy urgently.

Still, no response. Then, in the blink of an eye, he vanished.

"SORA!!!" Kalista, Donald, and Goofy all yelled at the same time. Kalista ran to where he had been standing, then looked around earnestly, but it was no use; he was no where to be found.

"What happened?" Goofy asked in an anxious tone. Donald didn't say anything, since he was too busy running back and forth hysterically to pay words any mind. After a few more moments of the three of them combing the area for any trace of their lost friend, they came back to the center of the clearing, each shaking their head.

"N...now what," panted Donald, who had finished with his frenzied spasm, was now instead glancing all around him every split second.

"I'm, I'm not sure," said Kalista. She had no idea what to do. Where had Sora gone? Was the Organization behind this? She had never seen them perform a trick like this before. If it was them, they would have to get to the castle before they could find Sora.

"Kalista, _behind you_!"

Kalista's musing was cut short by Goofy's warning. She turned quickly to see two small nobodies lunge at her. She ducked just in time, and they landed behind her. Donald wasted no time in summoning lighting to the silver creatures' location. They disappeared instantly. Kalista looked over and saw more nobodies appear and attack Goofy. She ran to his side to help fight them off. The sound of her metal sai sent a shrill echo through the streets as they cut through their targets. With those nobodies gone, she turned to face any more that had snuck up from the floor.

Only... there were no more. The three of them stood, rooted to the spot, waiting for more attacks. But after another minute, there were still no sign of an enemy. Slowly, Kalista lowered her fighting stance. Soon, Goofy and Donald did the same. She could read the question on their faces; she had the same one on hers. She glanced back at the tower, thinking hard. What on earth was going on?

Suddenly, she heard the other two give a gasp behind her. She pivoted around, and let out a small shriek. There, just inches away from her face, was Sora. Kalista was so shocked that she lost her balance and fell to the ground, making a slight splash from landing in a puddle. For a few moments, she was at a loss for words. Sora just stood, in the same place as before, staring at the tower just like before. Kalista was beginning to wonder if he was even really there, or just her imagination, when he finally spoke.

"You... make a good... other..." he whispered, as if to himself.

Kalista had no idea what he was talking about. In fact, she thought it was completely absurd. She had, however, found her voice. But before she could utter a sound, Donald beat her to it.

"Are you ok, Sora?" he asked slowly, almost like he was afraid of making him disappear again.

The sound of his name seemed to break the spell over Sora. His eyes came back into focus, and he turned to look at Donald and Goofy.

"What... just happened?"

"Gawrsh, I don't know," answered Goofy, "you just disappeared. Then we had to fight some nobodies."

"Oh," responded Sora. He looked down, as if something didn't make sense to him. "He said... he defeated Riku."

Kalista's ears pricked up at this, and she listened more intently.

"Who said that?" asked Donald.

"That guy," insisted Sora, looking up, "in the black coat."

"But nobody could defeat Riku," Donald stated with a confident air. Kalista suppressed a smirk.

"Y...yeah, you're right," agreed Sora.

"A black coat means Organization XIII," reasoned Goofy, "he must have been trying to trick ya."

"Yeah, that must be why we didn't see him," agreed Donald, "or maybe you're just tired, Sora."

"C'mon," said Goofy, "let's just find a way to get into that castle."

Sora gave a nod.

Then, for the first time he spotted Kalista, and a confused look crossed his face. "Why are you on the ground?"

Kalista gave him a look that a big sister would give an annoying little brother that had just barged into her room. With a huff, she got up and kept right on walking towards the shinning moon without a backward glance. Behind her she heard Sora asked the others, "What? What'd I do?"

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The castle stood tall and foreboding; a sense of unwelcome surrounded it. It was certainly not the type of place that wanted unexpected visitors. Of course, it didn't seem to matter if they were expected or not. As Kalista stared at the giant white citadel, her gaze shifted to the massive chasm that separated it and the ground where she stood.

They had finally made it through the city to the Organization's base, but now it seemed their trouble had been a waste of time. A large rift divided the city from the fortress, and no bridge or connection offered any kind of passage into the colorless palace. They had even caught up with King Mickey, but he too stood still, staring ahead and unsure of what to do.

After a moment's pause, Goofy broke the silence. "A dead end?" he asked, voicing the same question on everyone's mind.

Mickey shook his head, "There must be a way in."

"But how?" asked Kalista. She surveyed the area and tried to look for options. She didn't have gravity magic strong enough to carry all of them inside, and she was quite certain her portal would be blocked by dark magic. Jumping, of course, was out of the question.

"Wait a minute," said Sora suddenly, "look over there."

All eyes followed his finger, which was pointing to the lower left side of the castle. There, from a small window, gleamed a beam of light.

"What do ya think it means?" Goofy asked, but Sora didn't answer. He was staring at the light. Then, he looked at his keyblade; then back to the light.

"I wonder..." his said softly. Slowly, he lifted the keyblade and aimed it at the shining light. Instantly, there was a flash, and for a moment, no one could see anything. Then, when Kalista opened her eyes again, there lay a large, white bridge leading to the castle.

"Let's go!" Sora led them as they all ran up the sloping bridge.

When the reached the entrance, Kalista was again amazed at the size of the castle. It looked even bigger on the inside then from before. It was also colder here, as if the marble walls were secretly made of ice. Sora was looking left and right, then up and down. Then he cupped his mouth with his hands.

"Kairi!" he shouted, "Kairi, where are you!?"

Out of reflex, Kalista quickly clamped her hand over his mouth. "Shhhh!" she whispered fiercely.

"She's right, Sora," said Mickey quietly, "remember, this is their stronghold."

He darted away from them.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" yelled Kalista after him. She was getting pretty tired of him appearing and disappearing all the time.

"Oh, so _you_ can yell, huh?" said Sora with a hint of contempt.

Kalista just ignored him and followed in the direction the king had gone. But no sooner had she taken a few steps than three nobodies appeared, blocking her path. At least ten more rose from the ground and slinked towards them.

"Looks like we've got company," observed Goofy, raising his shield.

"But we don't have time for this," said Sora. He looked at Kalista, "just cut through enough of them so we can keep moving."

Kalista nodded, but she knew that countless nobodies would come at them wherever they went in this castle. There was little chance they could just outrun the dexterous creatures. Besides, she knew none of them had any idea where Kairi was. Suddenly, she got an idea. Murmuring a spell, she shot her hands out in front of her. Immediately, a large, flat pedestal of ice materialized before her. It was long and round, with edges that curved upwards.

"Everybody get on!" she yelled to the others, jumping into the frozen sphere. At first, they looked at her like she'd lost her mind. Kalista rolled her eyes, "Oh, come on, just do it!"

Finally, they scrambled on with her; the nobodies were still closing in around them. "Brace yourselves," said Kalista. Taking a deep breath, she focused all her concentration and energy. At first, nothing happened. Then, just like what had occurred back in Hollow Bastion, water began to rise up from the ground. First it built up slowly, then, it burst into the air. A giant wave had taken form, only this time, Kalista was the one creating it. It churned and rolled high above them like a huge turquoise tower.

"Kalista!" shouted Sora as he gaped at the wave, "are you out of your mind?!"

"Trust me!" she yelled back.

She held up the wave a moment longer, and then released it. A thundering roar erupted from the water as it crashed down towards them. The nobodies, now panicked and confused, sprinted away from the oncoming tidal wave. Goofy held his shield up in front of him, Sora shouted something incoherent, and Donald just yelled at the top of his lungs. But Kalista didn't pay them any mind. Instead, she muttered another spell and raised her arms. The ice under them began to rise, following her ascending hands. Eventually, they were so high that the wave was crashing beneath them.

"Hold on tight!" Kalista yelled. She rapped her arms around Sora's torso. Goofy grasped Sora's arm and Donald latched onto Kalista's leg. Then she severed the spell, and the four of them dropped out of the air down towards the racing water. For one brief second, the only feeling was that of falling. But in one more second, the ice board on which they stood come in contact with the roaring wave. For a moment, it seemed they were doomed to be swallowed by the mock river. But... they weren't.

"Wait a minute," said Donald, "we're... floating!"

It was true. Kalista had put air bubbles in the ice, making it buoyant. The curved edges also kept water from sinking it. In fact, they were ridding in a make-shift boat. When Donald and Goofy realized they were safe, they gave praises to Kalista for her skill. But Sora just let out a groan.

"Kalista, why can't you ever just _tell_ us what's going on?"

Kalista gave him a thoughtful smile, "I guess I need to work on that."

They surfed through chamber after chamber of the castle. Kalista knew that if the water kept flowing, it would sooner or later bring them to the center of the base, and then stop. She hoped there they could find some answers. If anything, they didn't have to worry about any nobodies getting in their way. Not to mention how much fun she was having!

At last, the raging water was slowing down. Actually, not only was it slowing down; it was getting lower. _That's weird, _thought Kalista, _the water should be filling up the center room. But it also looks like it's vanishing. But how's that possible?_

The water sunk lower and lower, and they traveled slower and slower. Straight ahead were two enormous doors. The doors were already open, however; probably due to the massive force of the wave, before it had begun petering out. They sailed through on what seemed only a few feet of water left. Once they were inside, Kalista realized why the water was disappearing. The room was colossal. The walls reached far up to a towering ceiling. A large section of the wall was made of glass, and the heart shaped moon could be seen just outside. But the secret to the fleeing water was right before them. The floor of the room only stretched a short distance. Beyond that, it stopped like the edge of a cliff, and far below was another floor. That was where all the water was going, creating a temporary waterfall.

Now, however, the waterfall was almost gone, because so was the water. As the last of it fell over the end of the floor, Kalista's ice boat came to a final stop. No longer needing it, she snapped her fingers, and it melted to a feeble puddle.

"That was quite a ride," said Sora, who actually seemed to be very happy it was over, "but, now where are we?"

"Beats me," answered Kalista, "all I know is that this is the central room of the base. I just guessed that it would be a good place to start." _And let's hope it was worth all that magic,_ she silently added, already feeling the drain from the huge effort.

"Sora, you've done well."

Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kalista all looked up. There, on top of a high, elaborate ledge above them, stood an Organization member in the signature black coat. He had jagged blue hair and a strange scar on his face.

"Who are you?! And where's Kairi?!" yelled Sora, clutching his keyblade.

"My name," answered the stranger, "is Saix. As for your friend, who knows? Probably catching up with her friend from the darkness?"

"What are you talking about?" by now, it was obvious Sora was getting angry again. Kalista didn't like it when he got like this; it wasn't like him.

Saix waved his hand, "She doesn't need you anymore."

Sora slashed the keyblade through the air. "And I'm supposed to believe that?"

"Well, you don't have to. But you can believe this: Organization XIII has no further use for you..." he pointed towards the moon, "just look. Kingdom Hearts... thanks to you, we've collected countless hearts. Now, all that we need left is one more helping from the Keyblade Master."

With that, he snapped his fingers together. At once, a mass of darkness began covering the walls and floor. From the darkness emerged heartless in overwhelming numbers, their yellow eyes all focused on their prey.

Kalista realized what Saix was doing. King Mickey had told the four of them about how the Organization was somehow "using" the Keyblade Master for their own schemes. Now she understood what the scheme was: they wanted to recreate Kingdom Hearts, and when Sora killed heartless, he was helping them. She didn't know why the Organization cared about Kingdom Hearts; she didn't really understand that place to begin with. But what she had learned from the others is that Kingdom Hearts was not a place to be tampered with. She looked at Sora, and recognized that he, too, understood what the Organization was trying to do.

"We gotta fight!" yelled Donald, as the black creatures began closing in on them.

Sora raised his keyblade, but hesitated. "But... Kingdom Hearts!" Kalista knew they were in a lose-lose situation. If they fought, the Organization would succeed in whatever they were planning. But if they didn't, they were all done for. As the heartless came closer and closer, Kalista began feeling desperate. She was waiting for Sora to make a move, but still he stood embedded. She was almost out of patience. They needed to do _something_!

"Sora!!"

Suddenly, there was a cry from above. Kalista looked all around her, trying to figure out where it had come from. Then, upon another far up ledge, stood a beautiful girl in a pink dress and soft red hair. She was leaning over the railing and smiling as if she couldn't hold it back even if she wanted to.

"Sora, it's really you!" she yelled again.

"Kairi!" Sora shouted, and a smile also broke out onto his face.

_So that's Kairi_, thought Kalista. She felt a great sense of relief as the two stared at each other, drinking in the sight of the one person they'd wanted to see for so long. For a brief instant, it made her feel that all this fighting was really worth it; there really would be an end to all this terror and chaos, and when that end came, everything would be alright.

But the magical moment was cut short. The heartless had taken this time of distraction as an opportunity to attack. Kalista barely avoided three of them spring at with her with outstretched claws. Donald and Goofy had also gotten out of their way just in time. Sora, however, wasn't so lucky, and a large number of them pounced on him, forcing him to the ground. Kalista tried to come to his aid, but the masses of heartless coming out of the walls had finally made it to where they were standing. Now, a vast sea of small black figures was separating her from Sora and the others. She continued to fight them off, but the gap between her and her friends only seemed to widen. She wasn't sure if they were multiplying, or that the huge dose of magic she used had weakened her fighting ability. Kalista looked back at Sora, and became alarmed when she saw him fall to the ground again.

_We've got to separate these heartless,_ she thought frantically, _they seem to thrive on each other, and most of them are going after Sora. I've just got to get them away from him._

Then an idea came to her. "Sora!" she yelled above the sound of scraping metal and bursts of magic of the fighting, "Give me your keyblade!"

"What?!?"

"Just do it!"

For a split-second, Sora faltered. Then, with a grunt, he threw the keyblade into the air towards her. With a catlike grace, Kalista leapt up and grabbed it in midair. In the same fluid motion, she flung her two sai to Sora, which he caught and kept fighting the heartless with. By now, he had figured out her plan. Kalista just hoped it would work.

Now wielding the keyblade, she slashed through heartless after heartless, trying to get closer to the second level that extended above them. The heartless, by this time, were in a slightly confused state; exactly what Kalista had hoped for. Slowly, the majorities had stopped looming towards Sora, and were now advancing after her. Good thing she was much faster than they were. Gathering her strength, she concentrated on a burst of gravity magic, which sent her flying into the air. Then she latched onto the railing of the second level, and swung herself to its floor.

Panting slightly, Kalista closed her eyes. She was seeing spots, and had to grip the railing again for support. _I've been using too much magic_, she scolded herself, _any more, and I could pass out if I'm not careful._

After gathering her bearings, she opened her eyes and took in her situation. The heartless below her were trying to follow her to the second level, but their jumps kept falling short. However, other heartless along the walls were making their way towards her as well. She had succeeded in drawing them away from Sora, but now she didn't really know what to do next.

_Wait a second,_ she thought, _Kairi's on this level. I could meet up with her and help her fight. She doesn't know me, but she saw me with Sora, so at least she'll know I'm on her side._

With this knew idea in mind, Kalista looked for the girl she had seen earlier. After a moment of scanning the area, she spotted Kairi close to where Kalista had seen her before. But the sight wasn't comforting. Kairi had been surrounded by heartless, and they were now circling her, approaching closer and closer by the second. Then, they bounded down on her, crushing her to the ground. Instantly, Kalista ran towards her; keyblade in hand and ready to kill.

All of a sudden, Kalista skidded to a stop. She stood there, frozen, and stared at the strangest thing she had _ever_ seen. The heartless around Kairi had vanished, and someone was helping her to her feet. But seeing that someone was what had made Kalista stare. He was wearing an Organization coat, and his face was one she had never seen before, except for once in a picture. It was impossible, but it was right in front of her.

...Xehanort's Heartless?

But wasn't he dead? Sora had killed him, right? So what was he doing here, and _why_ on earth was he helping the girlfriend of his greatest enemy?

Kalista saw him hand Kairi a weapon that highly resembled a keyblade. She took it and proceeded to slash at the oncoming heartless. Xehanort... or whoever he was... followed behind her, drawing his own weapon. It was a slightly curved sword, decorated in red and blue. Kalista's eyes widened at the sight of it.

_But... isn't that...?_

A crazy thought entered her mind. An idiotic, unrealistic, ridiculous notion. Only a fool would give it thought; no one with any sanity would consider it. So why was it even there?

"No," Kalista said aloud, "there is just no way..."

Then, if by fate or chance, the heartless of Xehanort glanced up in her direction. In that instant, their eyes met. The two stood still, oblivious to the constant battle around them. Sound and feeling faded, and for a moment all Kalista could see were his eyes. They were a shrill, painful yellow, and behind them lay dark, unreachable hidden mysteries. Then, for just a brief instant, the eyes changed, and instead that which gazed at her were a striking and undeniable ice blue.

Kalista gasped.

_Crack!_

Without warning, the floor beneath her collapsed. Kalista threw up her hands and let out a scream as she plummeted toward the deadly abyss below.


	21. Chapter 21: Reunions

Chapter 21

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Darkness swirled behind Kalista's eyes as she fell. Her energy was gone, and she was so exhausted she couldn't even grasp the fact that her life would end in a matter of seconds. She didn't struggle; all she could think of was how much she needed sleep...

Sleep...

Her eyes finally closed, and conscious thought escaped her.

Then, like a hazy dream, she felt a small tug back to reality. She wasn't sure what caused it, but it felt like she was touching someone. Or rather, someone was touching her. Was it an arm around her waist? She couldn't be sure. But she did know she wasn't falling anymore. She felt suspended in midair. Then she was moving upwards, and finally, she felt herself being laid down onto a cold, smooth surface. This made her happy. Now she could sleep...

An unexpected jolt surged through Kalista's body. It ran up and down her spin and through her arms and legs. It was painful, but at the same time her mind woke up. She took a deep breath and her eyes snapped open.

Xehanort's heartless was looking down at her.

Suddenly, everything she had forgotten during her fall came back to her. Where she was, what was going on, and why she had been so surprised just before she fell. She felt a little dizzy, and lowered her head to let it all sink back in. Then it hit her.

_The guy in front of me is...!_

Kalista's head shot back up, ready to say exactly what was on her mind.

Only, there was no one there. Her eyes darted around franticly, and finally she caught sight of her rescuer again. He had run back across the room to where Kairi was fighting more heartless.

"Hey! Get back here!" Kalista yelled, jumping to her feet. But it was no use. There was too much noise to hear clearly. Still in a slight state of confusion, Kalista took in her surroundings. She was still on the second level, but was a far distance from where she had fallen. Come to think of it, why had she fallen? Looking back to her previous location, she saw that the floor had broken and fallen apart. Then she remembered how many heartless had been chasing her just minutes before. They must have caught up to her, and the weight had been too much for the thin, suspended floor to handle. She was still holding the keyblade from before.

Below her, Sora, Donald, and Goofy were still hacking away at heartless. She noticed Sora was more dysfunctional. After all, he didn't really know how to fight with her weapons. _I should go down there and help them_, she thought, _and then I need to talk to Ansem... I mean Xehanort... I mean..._

A chilling, familiar vibe flew through the air and rapped itself around Kalista's mind. She felt her blood turn cold. Only one person's presence gave off that sickening feeling. Kalista's eyes traveled around the room. There, on the highest pedestal above every battle, stood Maleficent. Beside her stood a heavy, dog-like creature. Even with the distance between them, Kalista could see her venomous eyes darting around, drinking in the surroundings with a disgusting pleasure that made Kalista's stomach turn. Her hands fisted, clutching the keyblade till her hand changed color. She forgot about everything else, and focused only on the target in front of her. Fury built up inside her; visions of her nightmares raced though her head.

"Time for payback, witch," she said, pre-fighting adrenalin already swimming through her body.

All of a sudden, a voice echoed through the massive chamber.

"So, Xigbar's been wondering, have you been a good boy?"

Kalista looked all around, searching for the source of the voice.

"Show yourself!" shouted Sora. Beneath her, Kalista saw him glancing around as well. Then, as an answer, an Organization member appeared before him. His long black hair was pulled back, and a patch hid one of his eyes. He was holding large shooting katars. He gave Sora a mocking smirk.

"Oh, it sounds like you haven't, Roxas," he continued.

Sora tilted his head in confusion. "Roxas?" he turned to Donald, "did he just call me Roxas?"

"You've really put Organization XIII in a pickle. I guess that must be why the Keyblade chose you. But man, did it pick a dud this time. You don't look like you're half the hero the others were."

"Are you done rambling?" asked Sora, irritated.

"Rambling," Xigbar laughed, "all I'm trying to tell you, traitor, is that you time is up."

Cocking his weapons, he aimed them straight at his three opponents.

_Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!_

"LOOK OUT!" yelled Donald, and the three of them sprinted out of the way of the oncoming bullets. Xigbar continued to fire his machinegun-like weapon, targeting Sora the most. Sora responded by knocking the bullets right back at him. Unfortunately, Sora wasn't used to the sai in his hands, so he couldn't advance close enough to strike his enemy.

Kalista couldn't remember a time when she had to make such a difficult choice as the one presenting itself to her now. Here was Maleficent, the person she hated most and was so close to finally extracting revenge on, and then there were her friends, who were fighting a losing battle. Her stomach squirmed, and she felt herself start to sweat. She need to act NOW, otherwise she'd be too late for both. She kept glancing back and forth between them, as if doing so would somehow help the situation.

Then, she saw Maleficent and her henchman exit through the door they had come. Kalista panicked; she couldn't loose sight of her! Not when she was so close to ending what had haunted her for so long. She headed for the same door, deciding her friends could take care of themselves. Suddenly, a sound made her stop in her tracks. A flurry of Xigbar's bullets had knocked Sora's weapons out of his hands, and a few had pierced his shoulder. He let out a pained yell and fell to the floor.

"Got ya now, traitor!" Xigbar yelled in triumph.

Kalista watched in dread as he aimed his both katars in Sora's direction for a final attack.

"Oh, damn it all!!!" she yelled, running to the edge of the ledge she was on and jumping off. She whizzed through the air at lightning speed in Xigbar's direction. Her shout had caused him to turn around, but not in time to stop the oncoming keyblade from striking him clear off his feet.

"Sora, catch!" she yelled, throwing the keyblade in her friend's direction. Sora responded by throwing her own weapons back to her. Kalista caught them and turned to Xigbar once more. However, he had taken this opportunity to get out of her reach. He now stood between her and Sora; both guns pointed at each of them.

"Well, well, well," he looked at Kalista with distain, "looks like the keyblade master's got a wench."

"A wench who's about to kick your sorry ass!" Kalista yelled back at him. Sora looked startled at her response; she must be really mad.

"Take your best shot," taunted Xigbar.

"With pleasure."

Instantly, masses of jungle vines broke through the marble tiles of the floor, surrounding Xigbar. Before he could escape their tangled forms, they rapped themselves around him. He struggled frantically, shouting and shooting at the inanimate beings, but the more he struggled, the tighter they constricted. Then, he let out a piercing cry.

Sora stood before him; his keyblade stabbed through Xigbar's chest.

Sora removed the keyblade, and the vines disappeared back into the ground. Xigbar fell to the floor on his hands and knees, rasping for breath. Darkness began to fade off his body, just like every Nobody at death's door.

"Why did you call me Roxes?" asked Sora in a clear, demanding tone.

Xigbar gave a short laugh. "Wouldn't you like to know," and then he vanished.

"Hey! Hold on!" yelled Sora.

"Sora, it's no use," said Kalista, "he's gone."

Sora let out an aggravated sigh. Turning to her, he eyed her warily. "You gonna be ok? I've never heard you that angry before."

"I'll be fine...eventually," Kalista answered, mulling over the chance she'd just let slip through her fingers.

"How did you perform such a strong spell? I thought you'd be too tired after the wave you created."

"I would have been," she agreed, "but I had... some help." She looked around. The heartless were, for the most part, gone. Kairi and her "friend from the darkness" were still on the upper level. Kalista stared at him, trying to make sense of it all. Sora followed her gaze, then looked back at her in disbelief.

"Ansem helped you!?" he asked in shock.

"Well, he's not really... Sora?" But he didn't let her finish. He was already running to the stairwell that led to the second level.

"Sora, wait, you don't understand... uh!" Kalista ran after him, a knot already forming in her stomach. This was not going to go well.

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As Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kalista reached the last stair, Kairi turned and saw them. Up close, she looked even prettier to Kalista than before. Her dark red hair fell slightly past her shoulders, and her pink dress seemed to highlight her already pinkish cream skin. But, even with the keyblade in her hand, her eyes still showed an innocence and gentleness unknown to anyone Kalista had ever met before. Donald's voice interrupted her musing.

"Kairi, you were great!" He said. Goofy gave an agreeing nod.

"Oh?" said Kairi, girlishly flipping her hair.

Sora walked up to her. For a moment, neither of them said anything. Sora seemed to be taking in this person whom he hadn't seen in a year but had thought of so often. Kairi seemed to do the same. Finally, Sora spoke.

"You are different, Kairi," he admitted, "but I'm just glad you're here."

"You and Riku never came home, so I came looking for you."

Sora looked away, and there was a deep sense of guilt in his eyes. "I'm sorry..."

But his apology was cut short as Kairi rapped her arms around him. He stiffened for a moment in surprise.

"This is real..." Kairi whispered in his ear. Sora smiled, and felt as if the largest burden on his mind had finally been lifted. Finally, he'd found her. She was safe, and they were together. Sora returned her embrace, feeling the warmth of her presence against him. He wished he could stay like this always; safe with her in his arms.

Then his gaze rested on the shadowy figure behind Kairi. Ansem was creating a portal, and as much as Sora wanted him to leave, he felt obligated to at least express his gratitude.

"Wait Ansem! I mean, Xehanort's heartless..." Sora said, letting go of Kairi and stepping forward. The cloaked man paused and looked back over his shoulder.

Kalista, who had been watching the happy reunion and almost forgot all of the awkwardness about to take place, cringed at Sora's stupidity.

"Uh, Sora?" she said quietly, trying to save him from saying more.

Sora didn't seem to hear her, and kept trailing on. "I never thought for a second that I'd ever see _you_ again..."

"Sora," Kalista said a little louder.

"...Just thinking about all the things you did makes me really mad..."

"Sora!" Kalista brought her hand to her face in embarrassment.

"...But... but you saved Kairi, right? I have to be grateful for that... so I'd like thank y..."

"_Sora!_"

"What?!" he said, finally turning around.

"Shut up!" Kalista yelled, very irritated by now. She saw "Ansem" give a small smirk, and then he turned to walk through the portal. Kairi, however, ran to him and grabbed his hand, pulling him back in earnest.

"Riku, don't go!" she said.

Everyone but Kalista immediately looked taken aback.

"Huh?" said Donald and Goofy, exchanging looks of shock.

"Kairi, wh...what did you just say?" asked Sora in disbelief.

Kairi turned back to Sora. "Riku," she repeated.

The cloaked man shook Kairi off. "I'm no one," he said, "just a castaway from the darkness."

Kalista couldn't help rolling her eyes at the dramatic statement.

"No," Kairi insisted, taking his hand again. "Sora, come here. Say something to him."

Sora hesitated, but then slowly made his way over to them. Kairi took his hand. "Here, you'll understand." She placed all three hands together. "Close your eyes."

Again looking doubtful, Sora did as he was told. A few moments later, his eyes opened again in awe.

"Riku...it's really Riku!"

He fell to his knees, still clinging to the gloved hand. "I looked for you," he said, tears starting to form and run down his face.

"Come on, Sora," the voice which spoke now had changed from a deep, middle aged voice to a young, teenage voice, "you've got to pull it together."

"I looked everywhere for you," Sora repeated.

Riku looked away, "I didn't want you to find me."

"Then it was him who kept helping us, wasn't it?" said Goofy.

"Huh?" asked Donald in confusion.

"Those clues we kept finding during our travels. It musta been Riku."

"I was starting to worry if you guys would ever catch on. Sora never did pick the brightest friends."

"What's that supposed to mean?" accused Donald.

Riku eyed Kalista, "except for her. She seems to have a talent for being conniving."

Kalista gave him a look. "I'm guessing that's not actually a compliment, but I'll take it as one."

"You're welcome," he answered.

Sora stood up and faced Kalista. "Wait a second, _you_ knew who he was? And you didn't tell me!?"

"I didn't know until this last battle!" she retorted, feeling clammy, "And I did try to tell you, but you were too interested in getting to Kairi to listen to anything I said."

"We recognized each other after you two exchanged weapons," Riku explained.

Kalista winced.

"Recognized? You mean you two have _met_ before!?" he stared at Kalista accusingly.

"No! Well, yes, but..." by now, Kalista really wished she'd told him everything earlier. She looked up to avoid Sora's glare. "I might have... run into him once before."

"Literally," added Riku.

"Hey! At least I stuck with Sora and didn't run and hide in the darkness," snapped Kalista, putting her hands on her hips.

"Ouch," said Donald.

"But you knew he was alive and _never told me_?!?"

"I wanted to," Kalista groped for a simple way to explain, "I just... it just wasn't my place to say anything. Mickey knew, right? But he didn't say anything. It's the same with me... mostly. I mean, if Riku didn't want you to find him, then it's none of my business to tell you anything. Besides, I didn't know where he was or anything, so it wouldn't have helped."

"Yes it would have. I wanted to know if he was ok," said Sora, looking back at Riku, "Why didn't you just let me know you were ok."

"I told you, I didn't want to be found," repeated Riku. He looked down at his hands, "Not like this. I couldn't. I fought Ansem—with Xehanort's Heartless—when it invaded my heart, and I won. But to use the power of darkness, I had to become Ansem myself."

"No offence," said Kalista, causing everyone to look at her, "but that's a really stupid excuse; to hide from your friends because you look a little different from before."

Riku's eyes narrowed on her, "No offence, but I'm afraid you don't have much ground to stand on in this. You have no idea what it's like."

"Sure I do," Kalista retorted, making Riku give her a strange look, "my point is, you don't even look that bad."

"Riku?" asked Kairi, bringing the quarrel to a halt, "about your...condition. Does what you said mean... you can't ever change back?"

Riku looked thoughtful. "This battle isn't over yet. And until it is, I still need the power of darkness."

Suddenly, Sora slashed his keyblade through the air. "Then let's finish it. You're still Riku, no matter what!"

Kalista smiled at his cheesy outburst. Typical Sora. He turned to Donald and Goofy, "So how about it; think we can handle one last rumble together? The King's waiting!"

"Yeah," shouted Donald, "let's get going!"

Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi all bolted towards the stairs that led to the next level of the castle. Kalista and Riku followed more slowly. As she walked, she saw him smirking at her from the corner of her eye.

"What?" she asked, still slightly irritated at him; not to mention uncomfortable.

"You know, lying just gets you into bigger trouble later."

"I didn't lie to Sora about what happened with... us..." Kalista argued, feeling more awkward by the second, "I just didn't expand on every detail."

"If you say so," he replied, walking faster to catch up to the others.

_I might as well just get it over with now,_ she thought, _I probably won't get another chance._

"Listen, Riku," she started, and he turned back to look at her, "um... about the last time we met. Well, about...uh, about my..."

"Daring escape?" he finished for her.

"Yeah, about that. I can explain..."

"Don't worry," he said suddenly, "your friend already filled me in on her "brilliant" invention."

Kalista stopped for a moment, confused. Then she let out a groan. "Oh, Ember," she muttered, "what _else_ did you tell him?"

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**So sorry it took forever to update. That was probably the longest I've ever procrastinated. But don't worry, I promise I _will_ keep updating until it's over. This story is close to finishing; only a few more chapters left. Sniff Sniff It's come such a long way. Hope you've enjoyed it thus far. **

**Have a Merry Christmas!**


	22. Chapter 22: The Truth Comes Out

**Chapter 22**

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The group walked on in silence. Sora led them with a confident air, and keyblade drawn in case of any surprise attack. Kairi shadowed his every move, as if wondering with baited breath what might happen next. Donald and Goofy were on either side of the two of them, and Riku followed close behind; his sword clasped casually in calm awareness. Each of them seemed to draw strength from on another. Now that they were all together, their bond seemed greater than ever before.

Kalista, on the other hand, felt the exact opposite. She walked along a bit detached from the rest of them, and fiddled with her weapons apprehensively. She didn't understand it. She had hoped that the secret about Riku finally coming out would ease some of the guilt for hiding it. But instead, things only seemed worse. Now it was as if revealing one secret awoke the fact that she still had others. The pang of shameful lies throbbed more with each step she took. But what could she do? How could she even begin to tell them about the other dark parts of her life? Would they even believe her?

Kalista shook her head. Of course they would. Sora, Donald, and Goofy were some of the kindest and most trustworthy people she knew. Casting a side glance at Riku, she wondered how much he already knew. After all, Ember just loves a good story to tell.

Kalista was so into her thoughts, she didn't even notice everyone stop, and almost tripped over Donald. She saw that they were outside the castle now, in front of a long case of stairs attached to the outer wall.

"What is it?" she asked Sora.

"That's what I'd like to know," he answered, his eyes fixed on something ahead. Kalista followed his gaze, and saw what he meant. The giant moon that was Kingdom Hearts was suspended above them, and a strange beam of light connected it to the castle.

"It must be the King and DiZ," answered Riku, but then corrected himself, "I mean, Ansem the Wise."

Kalista remembered the other man when she and Riku first met. That had been the real Ansem? But then why was he hiding? She almost said something, but decided against it. Whatever his reasons, they must be valid. After all, wasn't she doing the same thing?

"They must be higher up," Riku continued, looking at the beam, "we better hurry."

Sora nodded, then began running up the stairs with everyone else after him. When they had reached the end of the stairs, they had come to a large, long platform. On the other side were more stairs and a door.

"C'mon," urged Sora, heading towards the door.

All of a sudden Kalista got a bad feeling. She ran up and grabbed Sora to stop him. "Sora, wait!" she said, "something's not right."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know..." glancing around, Kalista raised her sais. The others had stopped now, too, and were watching her, waiting. She could have sworn she had felt magic... but maybe she was wrong. After another minute, she slowly lowered her weapons.

"I guess it was nothing..."

"LOOK OUT!"

Donald cried out as something sliced through the air towards them. Kalista jumped out of the way, but no sooner did she manage to escape one than more fell from the sky. Ducking and rolling, she dodged as many as she could before finding herself almost rolling off the platform. Jumping up, she looked around in a confused frenzy. Everyone was gone! What just happened?!

Before her stood large and very colorful... playing cards? It was true, the objects falling were giant cards, and now they had come together to form a huge box-like container.

"Kalista!"

Kalista gasped, "Sora?" she said, running over to the box. Moving her hands over the card walls, she could see there was just enough room between each card to see through. Sora's blue eyes stared back at her. She guessed everyone else must be inside, too.

"Are you guys alright?" She asked.

"Yeah, we're fine," he answered, "but what the heck is going on?"

"I... I'm not sure..."

"How amusing," said a voice behind Kalista.

She whirled around to see yet another stranger in a black cloak. He seemed older, with short blond hair and blue eyes. She had expected him to have a weapon, but apparently he was unarmed. He smirked at her.

"Here I though they Keyblade Master would be the one to dodge my cards," he continued, "but it seems _you_ were the better man."

"Who are you?" demanded Kalista, "Let my friends go!"

"I'd rather we just skip the formalities," he answered with a hostile gleam in his eyes, "as for your friends, the only way you can free them is if you defeat me."

"Fine by me," replied Kalista, striking her sais against each other, making a shrill noise as the metal clashed, "but I always prefer to know the name of the person I'm about to kill."

He smirked again. "Luxord's the name. Gambling's the game. Now, let's see if your luck rings true."

Then, with a snap of his fingers, Luxord disappeared. Kalista looked all around her, but he was no where to be found. Suddenly, something appeared at her feet. Jumping back, she saw that it was a dice cube the size of a small dog. For a moment, it just sat there. But then, it started getting bigger... and bigger... and bigger. Soon it was twice Kalista's height. It grew so fast that finally it blocked the entire view behind it. Then, it froze. It made a loud creaking noise, and before she knew what was happening, a giant shadow cast over Kalista.

"Oh, not good!" Kalista turned and sprinted away from the giant block as it plummeted towards the ground. If she didn't move out of its path, it would crush her! Her rapid strides got her out of the way just as the cube crashed to the ground. The floor shook violently, so much that Kalista lost her balance and fell. Looking behind her, she was dismayed to see the cube start turning again. Scrambling to her feet, she bolted to the edge of the platform. Again she was just beyond its reach, and it smashed the ground behind her. But no sooner had she taken a breath then it was upon her again, its shadow a deadly grave.

Scrambling for a means to destroy it, Kalista summoned iced shards and shot them towards the giant die, only to have them bounce right off its relentless frame. After dodging another crushing attack from the cube, she next tried setting it on fire, but that too proved useless. Desperate, she then tried a lightning attack, and when that didn't work she even tried blocking it with a gravity spell. But nothing worked!

_I can't stop it! I'm just killing myself trying_, Kalista realized. It was true. Her frantic spells had already robbed her of an overwhelming amount of energy. If she kept this up much longer she would black out, and then the die would finish her off.

_Well, fine, if I can't stop it, I'll just improvise._ Concentrating, she called out a gravity charm and hosted herself high in the air, so high she was even above the giant cube. Momentarily relieved that she'd escaped, she now searched for her cowardly opponent who preferred to let his toys do all the work.

But then, all of a sudden, the rampaging cube stopped moving. It just sat there for a moment, a massive game piece immobilized. Then it unexpectedly… broke; collapsing like a shattered diamond. Only the shards weren't gems… they were cards, thousands and thousands of playing cards. Once they reached the ground, they stood straight up like an army of paper. Then, to Kalista's horror, they launched themselves at her. They came so fast she only had a split-second to defend herself. She slashed at the oncoming cards, but there were so many she couldn't even see the ground. The moment they hit, Kalista screamed in pain. The cards were razor sharp, like thousands of daggers. They tore up her arms and legs and stabbed her in the chest. Her vision blurred. Her entire body was in so much agony she couldn't even breathe.

Mindlessly trying to get away from the pain, Kalista pushed herself with all her might straight down and crashed to the ground. Barely being able to slow herself, she smacked against the floor and skidded to a stop. She felt blood gushing down her body and covering every part of her. Fighting to stay conscious, Kalista realized with dread that she had dropped her sais. Barely able to keep her eyes open, she groped for her missing weapons

"Looking for something?" asked a darkly mocking voice.

Kalista whirled in senseless confusion towards the voice. There was a cruel laugh, and again Kalista let out a bloodcurdling scream. Her eyes now wide and bloodshot, she looked down and saw her sais penetrating her own stomach. Luxord was before her, holding her weapons in place. He laughed again.

"Looks like even the "better man" can't stand up against fate," he sneered.

But Kalista barely heard him. All her energy was gone. The blood-flow was too much, and these new wounds had finished her. Darkness overcame her sight, and she choked back a pain-filled sob. She felt her heart convulsing and then start to slow.

_That's it,_ she thought in anguish, _it's all_ _over. No more fighting. No more nightmares. No more pain…_

_This is the end…_

_thump thump…_

_thump thump…_

_thump…_

…

…

…

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**Riku's POV**

_Damn these cards! _I thought furiously. Kalista was out there completely alone with one of the most deadly of all Organization members, and we're sitting in here powerless!

"Sora, what's happening? Can you see her?" Donald asked anxiously.

"I'm… not sure. It's so hard to see out of this thing."

"Then move over!" I said, pushing Sora out of the way. Looking through the crack in the card prison, I could just make out an insanely giant die. I saw it tilt and then fall; the impact made the ground shake so hard I almost lost my balance.

"Riku, what's gotten into you? And what the heck is going on out there?!" yelled Sora, who _had_ lost his balance.

But I was trying too hard to see to answer him. So he found another split in the wall to look through. The ground shook again, and again, and again. Then I heard a painful scream and knew it was Kalista. Cursing Luxord and his murderous games, I scanned the area for her. Suddenly there she was, falling from the sky hard into the ground. Her body was coated in blood. Hopelessly, I stepped back and brought my blade against the prison wall as hard as I could, only to have it clash uselessly against the magic surface.

Another sickening scream erupted from outside, and then Sora gasped.

I pressed my face back against the wall to see what at happened. In horror, I saw Luxord laughing while forcing Kalista's weapons into her own body.

"KALISTA!!" Sora and I yelled at the top of our lungs.

She didn't move. She didn't even try to break free. It was then I knew she must be dying. Helpless, I watched as her eyes closed and her head lolled back.

"NO!!!" My vision went red with rage and I clenched my teeth so hard I felt warm blood run down my mouth.

Luxord laughed again, "And as for you band of fools," he said, shifting his gaze towards us, "I hope you give me more of a show then this poor excuse for a hero."

He started to yank the sais out of the dead girl before him and come after the rest of us. Only… he couldn't? I saw him try again, and again. But they wouldn't budge. Then he just tried letting the weapons go. But it was as if his hands were glued to the handles.

"What…?" I heard him say, perplexed.

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Kalista's body had changed color. It got darker and darker until her entire form had turned absolutely black. Then the blackness started growing; expanding and contorting at such a fast rate it took only a few seconds. Then all at once it exploded into a mass of swirling darkness. Like a storm cloud made of shadow, it swelled and spun inside of itself at incredible speed.

For the first time, Luxord looked afraid. He pushed and pulled, but for some reason he could not let go of the sais. The darkness swarmed over him and under him, coming closer and closer. Then the last thing possible happened. Two black claws reached out of the darkness and latched onto Luxord, pulling him into the black mass.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then a muffled scream rose from inside the cloud, and was quickly silenced. In that instant, the prison wall surrounding us disappeared.

I looked at Sora, and I could tell he was thinking the same thing.

_What… the… hell…?_

Suddenly the dark mass, as quickly as it has grown, began receding into itself. It grew smaller and smaller, and then vanished completely.

In its place stood... a monster. Its back was to us, so all I could see were wings, pale and purple skin, and a large scaly tail.

For a moment everyone was too shocked and confused to move.

"Alright," I heard Sora finally say as he brought out his keyblade, "who are you and what do you want?!"

I too raised my blade, but only out of habit. By this time I was so baffled I could barely think straight.

The gargoyle-looking creature, hearing Sora's threat, slowly turned around with its head down. I saw that the black claws were not actually black but a dark purple, and the same scaly texture as the tail and wings. Its feet were also claw-like, and it had purple hair, huge pointed ears, and pointed horns growing out of its head.

"Well?!" Sora's fury was as evident as my own. Whatever this thing was, it was about to die.

But instead of attacking or running away, the creature just sighed. Then, slowly, it raised its head. Bright red eyes met our gazes, but with not with the deadly glare I expected. It was a look of… shame? embarrassment? regret? Suddenly those eyes met mine, and the realization hit me so hard I felt my sword fall from my hand.

"It _can't_ be…" I barely whispered.

"I _told_ you that you didn't look that bad," she responded with a voice fully and unmistakably hers, "Now this? _This_ looks bad."


	23. Chapter 23: The Power of Darkness

**Chapter 23**

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This had been the moment Kalista had been dreading the most. Here they were; her friends that had become so dear to her, and they saw her as a freak. _And_ it was all her fault. If she had just told them the truth instead of being strong and silent like she always tried to be…

But it was too late now. No more hiding. Not like she had much of a choice anyway.

"It… it _can't_ be…" Riku was the first to say anything. Of course he was; he was the only one who had any idea what was going on. Yet for some reason his shock stung her more than she had expected. Since when did she care what he thought of her?

In spite of the somber circumstance, Kalista tried to give as lighthearted a reply as she was able, "See? I _told_ you that you didn't look that bad. Now this? _This_ looks bad."

The sound of her voice seemed to send a shockwave through everyone. Kairi gasped as her hands flew to her face in surprise. Goofy jerked his shield up as if to protect himself while Donald ducked behind him. Sora leapt back with his keyblade angled in defense. Riku was the only one who didn't move, except for his sword falling from his hand to the floor.

It was silent for another moment. Then, lowering his blade slightly to see her better, Sora whispered, "K…Kalista???"

"Yeah, it's me alright," Kalista responded, wishing she could somehow disappear just so everyone would stop staring at her.

"What… what the hell _happened_ to you? Who did this to you?!" Sora had fully lowered his weapon by now, and started walking towards her, his eyes full of concern.

But then Riku reached out and blocked Sora's advance. He had retrieved his sword from the ground, and was now holding it protectively in front of himself and Sora. He eyed Kalista warily.

"So, this is what it does to you?" he asked knowingly. His caution mortified and angered Kalista, but at the same time she hadn't expected any less. She felt the darkness pulsing through her, feeding her body such power her limbs were practically bursting to move. To fight. To kill. She had to focus just to stand still. It was terrifying. And she could tell Riku sensed her darkness more than the others.

"Yes," Kalista answered. Silently, he inclined his head toward Sora, indicating that she had better start explaining herself. She nodded and took a breath.

"Ok look, I haven't been completely honest with you," she looked at Sora, then at Donald and Goofy, and then back at Sora, "Guys, I'm sort of… under a curse."

"A curse? What kind of curse?" asked Donald, now feeling much better that she wasn't a monster and that they were talking about an area of his expertise.

"Frankly, I'm not really sure. But I think it's called the "Heartless Curse". I'm not sure exactly how I got it, but when it uh… activates, I turn into this," she gestured to the form she was currently in.

"Fascinating," Donald said, looking at her more intently. He started waddling forward to get a closer look.

"No Donald, stay back." Riku said firmly, making Donald stop in his tracks. Sora looked at his best friend in confusion.

"But Riku, it's Kalista. She may look pretty freaky, but I'm sure she wouldn't try to hurt us."

"We don't know that," he responded obstinately, "just look at what she did to Luxord."

"But…"

"No, Sora, he's right," everyone looked at Kalista. "This thing is evil and extremely powerful. I… I don't know how much of it I can control," she lowered her eyes, "you shouldn't get to close to me."

"I just don't understand," said Sora, stepping away from Riku and started pacing, "how did this happen? When did this happen?"

"Well," Kalista braced herself for the impact, "the first time was actually a little before I even met you."

"WHAT?" Sora stopped dead in his tracks and stared accusingly at her, "you mean this has been going on ever since we've known each other and you _never said anything_?! What were you _thinking_?! This is the kind of thing you _tell people_!"

"_I know_!" admitted Kalista, having to yell just to be heard over Sora's ranting. Calming down, she continued dejectedly, "I should have told you the truth. But I thought I could handle it, only I didn't realize just how powerful and dangerous it was. Besides, I didn't want you to worry about me when you couldn't do anything to help."

"Says who?" Sora challenged, "I bet we could have found some sort of cure easy!"

"Not as easy as you think," Kalista heard Riku say. Sora looked back at him in astonishment.

"So you even knew about her curse?!"

"I did," he answered, "we met before she had met up with you, because DiZ—the guy who helped me wake you up— wanted to find the person with the Heartless Curse, because they were supposedly going to help you defeat Xemnes. But she didn't exactly like us in her business, so she left, and since then none of us have been able to find a cure."

"And that," Kalista added sheepishly, "is the real reason I didn't tell you I knew Riku. Because then I'd have to tell you about this."

"I can't believe you two!" Sora spun around and crossed his arms in a sulk. Kalista tried not to smile at his pouting.

"I was wrong to have lied to you, Sora. I'm sorry."

"You should be," he agreed, still turned away from her. He stood like that for a few minutes, then glanced back, slight confusion on his face. "So you said this has happened to you before. How long does this whole look-like-a-monster-thing last?"

Kalista had already been worried about that, "Every time it's happened before it only lasted a few moments. I've only actually fully transformed once. I… I don't know why I'm not turning back now…"

"Sounds to me like a progressive curse," said Donald, causing everyone's gaze shift to him, "curses are a kind of black magic. When a spell is progressive, it gets stronger each time it takes effect, until the final episode when the spell… takes over completely."

Everyone was quiet, pondering Donald's words. To Kalista, they hung over her like a dark cloud of dread. Then out of nowhere Sora grinned and shot his keyblade in the air.

"Well then what are we waiting for?" He said excitedly, "you've got a curse to be lifted, I've got a Nobody leader to defeat, and we've got a world to save! So let's GO!"

And with that, Sora grabbed Kairi by the arm and ran up the stairs to the next level of the castle. Donald and Goofy followed with renewed motivation. Kalista looked after them, getting a sick feeling in her stomach as she glanced at the only other person now in the room with her. Riku walked past her without a word; sword in hand, ready in case of any break in her demeanor.

"So, this is how it's going to be, huh?" Kalista said to his back, mentally punching herself for feeling so hurt at his response to her, now that she was a threat.

"This is how it's going to be," he answered, without even a backward glance.

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Riku's POV

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I couldn't remember a time when I had been so shaken. It took most of my mental strength just to maintain my composure. I kept thinking back to what had happened just moments ago. It kept replaying over and over in my mind, like a broken record that didn't belong to me.

The fact that the curse had finally overpowered Kalista was not what had rattled me. I knew that was bound to happen sooner or later. DiZ had told me so, although I certainly wasn't expecting her to transform into a monster and viciously kill an Organization member with her bare hands. The dark power surrounding her was incredible; I hadn't felt anything so strong for over a year since…

But that wasn't it either. Sure, it made me anxious. One wrong move and Sora, Kairi, or any of us would be goners. I just had to keep her at a distance and under control until I could find DiZ so he could help her.

But what had unnerved me so much had been before her transformation. Back there, trapped in that damn prison, I had never lost control like that. I had been so petrified. So angry. So desperate to save her. How had the jeopardy of some girl's life who I barely knew done that to me? What is she to me? No one. Just a girl meant to help Sora save the day like he always does. Just a girl. Just a girl. So why, in that one moment when I thought she was dead, had I felt willing to give anything just to bring her back? That wasn't like me. For Sora or Kairi, maybe. But for her? It didn't make any sense.

_What's wrong with me?_

It was fine now. I totally regained my self-control after that. I could tell she was angry with me for treating her now like the enemy, but she'll have to get over it. Besides, I have to stay indifferent with her. I can't risk…well, whatever it was that happened to me before…happen again.

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The group had only gone a little ways before Sora was asking questions about the curse again. Kalista had to explain her time with Yen Sid and recite the prophesy—to the best of her memory—at least three times just to satisfy him. He was quite pleased with his new title "Vanquisher of Darkness" while Donald complained about why he and Goofy weren't mentioned in the prophesy at all.

Suddenly Goofy pointed upwards, "Garwsh, would 'ja look at that!"

They had come to a large, unusually built room where two entire walls were nothing but glass. Goofy was pointing to outside the glass, where the heart-shaped moon had suddenly been struck with a beam of light.

"What do you think it means?" asked Donald. But before anyone could answer another voice interrupted.

"Only you could have made it this far, Roxas," the voice came from the other side of the room. It was the same Organization member who had greeted them back in the center of the castle. Kalista remembered his name was Saïx. She saw him glance at her with a look of mild amusement. Something about him made her feel strange, and she wasn't sure why.

"You know, that's really starting to get old," said Sora, slashing his keyblade out in front of him.

"Yeah," agreed Donald, "he's Sora!"

At that, a giant weapon appeared in Saïx's hand; to Kalista it looked like a claymore; a battle axe merged with a hammer. "Different name, same fate," he said with a somewhat bored expression. Then he stuck his weapon out in front of him. All at once a wave of dark matter shot out from it.

"LOOK OUT!"

But there was no time to move. Kalista felt a sharp sting of electrical shock shoot her across the room. Hitting the floor hard on her back, she painfully tried to get to her feet again. Glancing around, she saw Riku and Kairi near her. They too had been thrown across the room by the attack. She also saw a reddish-colored barrier in front of her. Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Saïx were on the other side.

"No!" Kalista jumped and ran to the barrier in an attempt to help her friends.

"Kalista! DON'T!" But Riku's warning came too late as Kalista felt another jolt of electricity through her body from coming in contact with the barrier. Staggering back, she leaned against the wall for support.

"It's no use trying, Kalista," Riku said, hitting the barrier with his blade, "this thing is infused with Saïx himself. Only by killing him can it be broken. It's up to Sora and the others now."

"No," insisted Kalista, trying to get up but still in too much pain, "We've got to do something. I…"

Kalista buckled up into a ball on the floor. Some new pain had hit her; it wasn't just the electric shock anymore. It was pulsing hard against her chest and made her head throb so hard she couldn't think. _No, don't loose control!_ She thought, panic swelling up inside of her. But the darkness was seizing hold of her. _It's so strong! I can't…_

"Kalista?" Kairi asked in a worried voice. Getting closer, she saw blood appear from Kalista digging her claws into her legs. "Kalista, stop! You're hurting yourself! What's wrong??"

Suddenly the creature before her let out a shriek of rage and lunged at her. Kairi screamed as dark purple talons latched around her arms and sharp fangs came at her face. But before they reached her, a blast of shadow forced the creature to fly back up against the wall.

"Kairi, get behind me!!" Quickly Kairi did as she was told and hid behind the Ansem-form of Riku. "Hold your blade ready," he told her, brandishing his own, "I think I only made her stronger."

That was certainly how it looked. The monster before them had seemed to take in the darkness thrown at it instead of weakening. Blood-red eyes looked hungrily at the two of them, and the creature dove again at its prey. Hastily Riku ducked under it, and while it was occupied with Kairi, grabbed its tail and pulled it to the floor. But before he could attack it with his sword the creature had him by the neck with one hand and knocked away his weapon with the other. Choking in breath, Riku struggled against the iron grip of the monster, but it was too strong. Hissing with triumph, it again opened its mouth to tear into its victim's flesh.

But then the barrier shattered.

Instantly the creature stopped its attack. The deadly eyes turned docile, and the monster quickly jumped away.

"Kairi, Riku, Kalista!" Sora, panting after the battle, ran to his friends with Donald and Goofy following close behind. "Are you guys alright?"

No one answered. Kairi looked horrified, and Kalista wouldn't even look up. Sora looked around bewildered. "What happened?"

"It's alright," Riku had finally recovered his breath. Getting up, he said, "Kalista lost control of herself and attacked us."

"WHAT?!" the three newcomers all said at the same time. "How? What happened?" Sora asked as he walked over to Kairi. She shook her head, not knowing what to say.

"I…I'm sorry…" Kalista's voice came out broken. She was still kneeling on the floor. "I…it just took hold and… I couldn't…"

"It's not entirely your fault," everybody looked at Riku in confusion, "I think it's because of Saïx. You only lost control when he appeared and hit us with his dark wave. And when I attacked you with darkness, you only got stronger. I think that the more darkness there is around you, the more powerful the curse's hold on you becomes and the harder it is to control it."

Kalista thought this over for a moment and realized it must be true. When Sora had killed Saïx and the barrier broke, she felt the darkness retreat back inside of her. It had been so _powerful_, taking over her limbs and filling her mind with death and destruction. She never wanted to go through that again.

"Then…I shouldn't keep going," she concluded, still not looking up, "the further we go, the more darkness there is waiting. You guys have to go on without me."

"Not a chance!" Sora walked boldly over to Kalista, grabbed her scaly arm, and lifted her onto her feet.

"But Sora…"

"No! Yen Sid's prophesy said we have to stick together to lift your curse. I'm not about to leave you to get eaten up by it just because you're scared of losing control again. If we're going to beat this thing we have to fight the darkness, not run from it. So you _are_ coming with us and we _are_ going to beat Xemnas and we _are_ going to lift your curse. Deal?"

Kalista wanted to keep arguing, but she just couldn't. Because Sora was right. She needed to keep going. If she stayed there would be no hope for her. Her only chance was to keep fighting.

Taking a deep breath, she nodded, "Alright, fine. It's a deal."

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**Alright! Rose is back in business and almost done with the story :)**

**Just a couple chapters now. So exciting! **

**Review Review :D**


	24. Chapter 24: The Power of Light

**Chapter 24**

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"You know what I still don't get?"

They were all still in the strange half-glass room. Sora continued, "Why does everybody keep calling me Roxas?"

Then, to everyone's surprise, Riku answered him. "Because Sora," he stated matter-of-factly, "Roxas is your Nobody."

"WHAT?" asked Donald and Goofy simultaneously. Kairi gave a little gasp while Kalista just gapped in confusion.

"My…my Nobody?" asked Sora in bewilderment, "but that's crazy! I never turned into a heart……..," suddenly a look of realization crossed his face, "oh, yeah."

Kalista was still totally lost, but Kairi seemed to understand. She walked over to Sora and placed her hand in his, "It was when you came to rescue me, remember?"

It was then Kalista remembered Sora telling her about his last adventure. A year ago he had faced the darkness to rescue Kairi from Xehanort's heartless. Kalista guessed that somehow Sora must have managed to turn into a heartless and miraculously come back to the light. She had no idea how that was possible, but decided to wait and ask him about it later.

"Xemnas was the one who found Roxas," Riku continued, walking up to Sora as well, "He could use the Keyblade because he was your Nobody. That's why Xemnas brought him into the Organization, but Roxas betrayed them. After that I fought him because I thought it would help you wake up." At this, Riku looked away, as if seeing the past replaying in his mind. "I lost, but the next time we met I made sure I was the stronger one. But… maybe I didn't need to fight him after all. I think he left the Organization because...he really wanted to meet you."

Sora looked down at his keyblade, pondering his words. "Roxas… I wish I could meet him too."

Then Kalista saw Riku point to Sora's chest. Perplexed, Sora reached up as well, placing his hand where his heart would be. Then an understanding came into his eyes, and he nodded.

"All right," Riku said, ending the unique moment, "let's go."

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"Do you guys hear that?" Donald asked.

As the six of them ran up long flights of stairs, they heard a strange noise growing louder and louder. As they finally approached the end of the stairwell, Kalista heard a familiar voice.

"Ansem! The machine!"

Then she heard someone laugh quietly. "All the more proof that hearts cannot be contained by data. Run, my friend! It's going to self-destruct, and anything could happen!"

"But…" the familiar voice insisted.

Just then the staircase ended, and before Kalista laid a very peculiar sight. The familiar voice belonged to none other than King Mickey, and a slight distance from him stood an older man with long blond hair, struggling to hold a bizarre kind of object that was responsible for the beam of light hitting the moon. It was making that strange noise they had heard earlier, and looked extremely unstable.

"Your Majesty!" Sora said above the sound of the machine.

"DiZ!" Riku said at the same time. Kalista realized the man before her must be the one she had met before in what seemed like a lifetime ago.

Ansem looked at them all, "Sora, the rest is up to you." Then he glanced down and added, "Roxas—I doubt you can hear me—but...I am sorry. And Kalista," she gave a start when he addressed her, amazed that he recognized her in her current state, "forgive me for not being able to help you more. I don't know what evil has forced this demon upon you, but I am confident that it can be defeated. It can all be defeated. Somehow… I know…"

The machine jerked and started shaking even more violently than before.

"Ansem!" Mickey shouted in alarm.

"My heart is telling me what I must do," he insisted, "Please allow me to do what it says."

"No!" Mickey started running to help his friend, but Riku stopped him.

"Riku!" Mickey yelled in protest.

"His heart's decided," Riku said firmly, "we can't change that."

Suddenly Kalista felt sickened; like a dark haze had risen up inside of her. She wasn't sure what was happening, but it felt morbidly similar to how she felt when Saix had appeared.

Then out of nowhere came a sinister, mocking laugh. Everyone took out their weapons, searching for the location of the voice.

"I was wondering who would dare interfere with my Kingdom Hearts." A short distance away from them appeared the man Kalista recognized from way back in Hollow Bastion. It was Xemnes. "And look—here you all are. How convenient for me. Ansem the Wise... You look pathetic."

"Have your laugh," Ansem retorted, "I deserve as much for failing to see you for the fool you are."

Xemnas just laughed again, "Students do take after their teachers. Only a fool would be your apprentice. After all, none of this would have happened without you. _You_ are the source of all Heartless. It was your research that inspired me to go further than you ever dared."

Ansem looked away, lost in his pain and regret, "I admit...my disregard brought chaos to more worlds than one…"

But Kalista couldn't hear them talking anymore. It was back. The pulsing. The throbbing in her chest. The hammering behind her eyes. Her breath was stolen away by the pressure on her lungs. The darkness was seeping through her again, screaming to be released. Xemnas' presence was even worse than Saix; she felt the shadows starting to consume her. _NO! Focus, Lista. FOCUS! You almost killed someone last time. You can't let it take over again. You CAN'T_. But try as she might, the darkness would not be silenced.

Riku glanced over and saw Kalista leaning against the railing, her face pale and drawn. As he watched her gasp for breath, he realized with horror that the darkness surrounding Xemnas must be activating the curse. Not knowing what else to do, he ran to her.

"Kalista," he said, grabbing her by the shoulders, "_Kalista!_ Look at me!"

His voice cut through the screams of the darkness inside her head, and Kalista looked into his neon yellow eyes. "Don't loose yourself to it," he commanded, "come back to the light!"

His voice seemed to overpower the darkness, but only for a moment. Once silenced, it rushed back at her, clawing at her sanity and trying to take over. She felt her head slump forward and her vision fade. But then she felt hands on either side of her face which pulled her back up, forcing her back to reality and the image of those yellow eyes. "Don't let it have you, Kalista," he kept saying, making the darkness retreat again, "you don't belong to it!"

"Kalista!" this time it was another voice. A friend's voice.

"Kalista!" and another friend.

And another. And another. And Riku's voice again.

"Kalista! Kalista! Kalista! Kalista! KALISTA!!!"

The darkness could not drown out their cries. It screamed and clawed and fought, but it was no match. Finally it let out one last vicious shriek before fading deep down inside again. Kalista sucked in a huge breath of air and then felt her knees give out as she collapsed. She felt someone catch her and set her slowly to the ground.

"…Kalista?" Slowly opening her eyes, she spied Sora looking at her with worry on his face. Raising herself onto her knees, she became conscious of five bodies crouched around her, most with weapons drawn in caution. "I… I don't understand," she whispered, looking at her hands. They were still scaly and clawed, but she felt no pulsing. No throbbing. "It's…gone."

She looked up, baffled, at Sora. He stared at her for a moment, and then a broad grin stretched across his face. "Well what do you know? Looks like we must have beat it, huh?"

"We've said enough!" Ansem shouted.

Everyone jumped up with a start. After focusing so much on Kalista, they had all practically forgotten that Ansem and Xemnas were having a full-blown verbal battle. The machine in Ansem arms was jumping around like crazy, and it was beginning to fall apart. "Riku," he shifted his attention, "you know what to do." Riku seemed to understand him, and nodded. "King Mickey," Ansem continued, "my friend, forgive me. _Farewell!_"

In that instant, the machine exploded. A brilliant light burst forth and blinded Kalista until she saw nothing but white. She felt the force of the blast send her flying back, knocking her against the wall and then onto the floor.

Then she saw nothing.

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When Kalista woke up, she felt completely disoriented. It felt like… something was wrong. Or at least different. She couldn't remember where she was or why she was lying on the ground. Then she recalled the brilliant flash of light and being thrown into a hard surface. But now all she saw was darkness. Gingerly, she moved her body to see if she had broken any bones. Nothing hurt, which gave her the smallest amount of relief. But when she moved the ground didn't feel like ground at all. Suddenly Kalista realized she was only seeing black because her eyes were still closed. Very slowly—afraid of what she might see—she opened them.

And gasped.

"Riku?"

It turned out she wasn't the only one who had been hit by the light. There, just underneath her, was Riku. He must have broken her fall, which explained why she wasn't in any pain. But that wasn't why she gasped.

She gasped because gazing back at her was the _real_ Riku; the one she had met all those months ago. Same face, same long silver hair, same mock-Organization cloak, same blindfold covering his eyes. As he looked up at her, Kalista could have sworn she saw his face turning red. But maybe that was just because her own face felt hot from being pressed against him. As they both struggled into a sitting position, she was conscious of him staring at both himself _and_ her with an open mouth. Finally she couldn't take it anymore.

"What are you staring at me like that?!"

"Kalista… _look_ at yourself!"

Quickly she looked down at her hands, and another gasp escaped her. They were _her_ hands, not the gruesome claws she had been expecting. The wings and tail were gone, her legs were her own again, and her long, dark brown hair had returned to glide down her back. Happiness welled up inside of her as she realized what it all meant.

It was gone. The curse was finally _gone._

"Riku? Kalista?"

They both looked over at the sound of their names. The rest of their friends were just now recovering from the explosion, and Sora noticed them for the first time. Awe covered his face as he stared gapping at the two of them. A moment later he was on his feet right next to them, looking back and forth as if he couldn't believe his eyes.

"Woooooooow," both Goofy and Donald mimicked his amazement as they too stared at the phenomenon.

"What… what happened?" Kairi asked breathlessly. Both Kalista and Riku shook their heads at her question, because they themselves had no idea how to answer.

Finally it was Mickey who gave a guess. "The machine," he said, trying to ration it all out, "Ansem did say _anything_ could happen…"

Riku stood up, and Kalista followed suit. The group was quiet for a moment, still slightly shell-shocked after such a drastic incident. Then Sora asked the question they had all been wondering.

"Uh, Riku? You gonna take that off?"

"Oh…" Riku felt his face, realizing that he was still wearing his blindfold. Reaching behind his head, he untied it and then pulled it off. Behind the cloth were vivid teal-colored eyes that Kalista realized she had never actually seen before. She didn't even know why he had worn the blindfold in the first place.

Voicing her thoughts, Sora asked him, "What was that thing?"

But it was Mickey who answered. "His eyes couldn't lie."

"Lie?" Sora asked, confused. Then he got up in Riku's face, "And just who were you trying to fool? Huh? Huhhhh?"

"…Myself," Riku answered with a small smile.

Kalista wondered what he meant by that. But Sora seemed to understand and just gave an irritated sigh. "Riku, c'mon!" he huffed, "honestly, you're as bad as Lista. Why did you try to do so much on your own? You got friends, like us!" Grandly, he waved around to indicate all the people around him. Riku followed Sora's hand with his eyes as he looked at each of group. When his gaze fell on Kalista, it lingered there for a moment, and she saw a strange expression cross his face. But it was gone an instant later, so she wasn't sure if it had just been her imagination. Finally Riku looked back at Sora.

"Have you forgotten?" he smirked, "I'll tell you why; because I'm not a total sap like you."

"Say that again!"

Just about everyone but Sora and Riku burst into laughter. Sora crossed his arms in annoyance. Kalista held her laughter in and just smiled, not wanting him to feel too betrayed.

Unfortunately the happy moment was cut short when Mickey suddenly cried, "Look there!"

Five heads turned to him. He was standing on top of the balcony railing and pointing. They all ran to join him, and Kalista was aghast at the sight that greeted them. Whatever Ansem had planned his machine to accomplish, it seemed to work. The giant heart moon had lost a great deal of its brilliance; now it was darker, as though infected. Thousands of bright colored spheres were floating down from the injured moon like giant glowing snowflakes. But Kalista seriously doubted Ansem had expected what happened next.

Once the spheres hit solid ground, they transformed into heartless. Thousands and thousands of heartless that were now swarming up the castle walls. It looked like a mass of black insects coming after their prey.

"Uhhh oh," was all Donald said.

"What do we do?" asked Sora, at a loss.

"We have to defeat Xemnas," answered Riku, unzipping his cloak. Underneath he had on another complete outfit, "He's the Organization's last survivor."

But as Kalista kept looking down at the dark army crawling towards them, this seemed like a ridiculous idea. "Are you crazy?" she asked him, "how are we _ever _going to get to the top floor, find Xemnas, _and_ defeat him before being devoured alive by heartless?!"

Riku looked back down at the growing throng of shadows. "We have to try."

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**Wow look at me go! I'm shelling out chapters like a madwoman! Well, compared to how I usually operate, anyway :P**

**So, like how I've incorporated a whole bunch of the original dialogue from the game into the story? I've just shifted around and changed some of it to include Kalista. Some of the stuff will be quite different from the game pretty soon, but that's good because it'd be boring if it was just the same old story, you know?**

**I love you all SOOO much! And if you want, you can show just how much you love me by…**

**You guessed it. Reviewing :)**

**Peace out!**


	25. Chapter 25: Hit And Miss

**Chapter 25**

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The six of them raced up the castle levels. Through countless rooms and numerous staircases they ran, desperate to beat the ravaging militia of darkness right on their heels. But each and every step of the way Kalista became more and more worried that their plan was hopeless; she had already been swallowed up by darkness once, and she certainly didn't want to go through it again.

Finally they came to a large, towering doorway that led into an equally large room. Panting, Kalista glanced back and then froze with horror. She hadn't even noticed how far the heartless had come, and now they were so close they had made it to the bottom of the staircase she had only just finished climbing.

"We're never going to make it!" Kairi yelled, as she too looked back into the sea of black and yellow.

"Yes we are!" Sora said, grabbing Kairi's arm, "we've come too far to lose now."

"We'll have to split up," Mickey quickly reasoned, "some of us will stay behind and fight while Sora goes to find Xemnas."

"No way!" Sora argued, "I'm not leaving anybody here to die fighting for me."

"Sora," Riku said, realizing Mickey was right, "you have to. There's no other way."

"NO! I won't…"

"You have to…"

"I _won't_…"

"Be gone from here!" an invisible voice boomed, "Leave these creatures to us!"

Everyone looked around in bewilderment. Then all of a sudden a burst of purple smoke ruptured up before them, and there appeared two figures, one of whom was the last person on the planet Kalista wanted to see.

"_Maleficent!_"

Hatred boiled up inside of her as she spat out the name. She clutched her sais so hard her hands began shaking furiously. All she wanted to do was plunged them into the witch's flesh right then and there. She felt her friends' eyes on her, confused as to how she knew the witch's name.

Maleficent glanced back at them and spied Kalista. "Well well," she said with mild amusement, regardless of the circumstances, "if it isn't the girl who's always in the wrong place at the wrong time. You really should choose your friends more carefully. They're sure to be the death of you someday."

Trembling with rage, Kalista summoned a deadly ice spell. Crouching low, she fused it with her blades and prepared to strike.

But before she could make a run for the witch, she felt someone grab her by the arm and throw her straight into a nearby pillar. Her spell exploded up into the air, useless, and her sais flung out of her hands.

"Riku! What are you doing?!" Sora yelled.

Kalista felt strong hands grab her arms and push her up against the wall. Riku looked directly into her eyes. "Don't," he told her, "don't do it."

All of Kalista's fury shifted to her captor. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she screamed at him, "let me GO!" She struggled wildly, but Riku held fast. "I won't," he insisted, "I won't let you do something you'll regret for the rest of your life."

"_Regret_? Who are you to say what I'll regret anything? You don't know _anything_ about me! You don't know ANYTHING! Let me GO!"

"It won't bring him back, Kalista!" Riku shouted, "Killing her won't bring him back!"

Kalista stopped struggling and just looked at him. His eyes told her he knew exactly what he was talking about. He knew why she hated Maleficent. He knew why she was bent on killing her. He knew _everything_. She knew Ember must have told him. She also knew in that same moment that he would _not_ let her go.

"Why?" she whispered desperately, "what reason could you possibly give me to let that monster live?"

"Because revenge will never satisfy you," he answered softly, "it will only destroy you. I've watched it destroy so many people. I almost let it destroy myself. I'm not about to let it destroy you. Not if I can stop you."

"But why?" Kalista didn't understand. Why did he even care?

Riku looked away, "I…I don't know."

"Sora!"Your Majesty"!" Maleficent's voice resounded again, "Do not forget, when I've destroyed them all, this castle shall be mine! Now be gone!" She and her dog-like companion turned to face the onslaught of heartless approaching them.

Mickey turned to his friends and followers. "We gotta hurry," he urged, running towards the last staircase that would lead them to the roof. Donald and Goofy ran after him.

"But," Sora protested, "we can't just…"

"They're doing what their hearts command," Mickey maintained as he kept running, "we can't interfere."

Sora hesitated. Then he grabbed Kairi's hand again and started chasing after his animal friends, stopping only long enough to yell, "C'mon you two! Let's go!"

Kalista stood there, torn between doing what she had wanted to do ever since Shaymar had died, and following her friends to protect everything that had become so dear to her. Riku had let go and was now watching her, waiting for her decision. She knew she only had time for one choice; she only hoped that it was the right one.

"Oh, to hell with it!" Kalista yelled as she bolted after the others. She could have sworn she heard Riku laugh softly as he followed close behind.

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"We're almost there," Mickey called back to the group as they ascended yet another staircase. Kalista was amazed at how fast that little mouse's feet could carry him. Her own legs felt weary with running, but she didn't slow down. The aura of darkness seemed to grow thicker with every step she took. Xemnas was close.

At last, the ceiling overhead and the walls surrounding them vanished into night sky. They had reached the roof.

And there he was.

Standing with his back to them, Xemnas faced the shadowy moon with his hands raised. "…oh my Kingdom Hearts…ruined. Now I'll have to start all over again." Then with a gallant sweep of his arms, he turned.

"Warriors of the Keyblade," he said, addressing Sora, Riku, and Mickey, "Go forth, and bring me more hearts!"

"NO!" All three of them cried in unison, raising their blades. Everyone else followed suit. Kalista positioned her sais diagonally across her chest, shifting her weight and crouching slightly. The yellow eyes before her were full of such zealous determination that she knew he would do anything to obtain his goal, and his dark power was unnerving. She had to be ready for any kind of attack. But instead of react to the harsh rejection, Xemnas continued to talk.

"Denizens of light," he said in a dismal tone, "answer this: why do you hate the darkness?"

Mickey answered before anyone else could, "Aw, we don't hate it," he responded thoughfully, "It's just kinda...scary. But the world's made of light _and_ darkness. You can't have one without the other, 'cause darkness is half of everything." At this, he turned to his friends, "Sorta makes ya wonder why we are scared of the dark."

"It's because of who's lurking _inside_ it," said Riku, giving Xemnas a venomous glare.

But it didn't faze Xemnas at all. "Then allow me another question," he pressed, "You accept darkness, yet choose to live in the light. So why is it that you loathe us who teeter on the edge of nothing? We who were turned away by both light and dark; never given a choice?

"That's simple. It's because you mess up our worlds."

"That may be... however, what other choice might we have had?"

"Oh, just give it a rest!" Sora cut in. He was clearly loosing his patience, "You're Nobodies! You don't even exist! You're not actually sad about anything!"

Xemnas shook his head, chuckling, "Very good. You don't miss a thing. I cannot feel sorrow, no matter what misery befalls the worlds. No matter what you think, what you feel, or how you exist."

At this, Xemnas threw his arms back up in the air. A strange colored mass started surrounding his hands. Kalista tensed, expecting this to be his first attack. But instead of attacking his enemies, the mass just swirled around and around like a spinning top. Then at once he disappeared.

"_Xemnas!" _King Mickey cried.

"Where'd he go?" asked Sora, turning around frantically; trying to block any hidden attack that could be coming. Everyone else was just as confused. Kalista glanced around her, then waited silently. She felt her heart beating faster with anxiety. Moments passed, but nothing happened.

"WHAT?!" Donald yelled suddenly, pointing up as his mouth hung open.

Following his finger, Kalista looked up at the moon, her eyes widening in shock. There, in the center of the moon, was Xemnas.

"Hear me, Kingdom Hearts!" He cried at the top of his lungs. The moon grew bright at the sound of his voice. "It seems we must begin anew. Ah, but know this: I will give to you as many hearts as it takes. Mark my words!"

The moon glowed brighter and brighter until it became impossible to see. Then, in a flash of white light, both Xemnas and the entire moon vanished.

Everybody stared at the now empty space, dumbfounded.

"How…how the hell did he _do_ that?" Kalista whispered in awe, "trying to transport yourself _and_ an entire moon is pure suicide." 

"Wishful thinking," Riku replied, "but there's no way he'd die that easily. He's run away like a coward… and taken all of Kingdom Hearts with him."

"So… what do we do now?" Sora asked, glancing from Riku to King Mickey. But before they could answer, Goofy interrupted.

"Uhhh, do you guys hear that?" he asked, putting his hand to his ear. Everyone else stopped to listen.

Kalista did hear it, but she wasn't sure what it was. Then all of a sudden Kairi let out a shriek.

"The heartless!" she screamed.

She was right. The mass of heartless had finally made it to the roof. Pouring out of the stairwell, they swarmed after their prey like ravaging monsters. Kalista realized in that instant that they were trapped; they were on the roof of the tallest tower of an eighty-story castle, and the only way out was overflowing with heart-hungry demons.

"We're never gonna make it out of here!" shouted Donald, already blasting magic at the onslaught of darkness. The hopelessness in his voice was contagious.

"Don't give up! Get in a tight formation!" Riku yelled as he slashed apart a group of heartless that had just attacked him. Following his direction, the group closed into a small circle with their backs facing each other. The heartless closed in around them until they were a giant black ring around their kill. Kalista looked beside her to see Sora clutching his keyblade, trying to guard Kairi with his body as best he could. Her heart was now hammering so hard she thought it would break through her chest, and her breath caught.

This was not how she wanted to die. Not here. Not in a hopeless fight in the enemy's lair, while their foe escaped and continued his destruction with no one to stop him. But then, glancing at each of her companions, she realized that, if she had to die, she would rather it be while fighting beside them…

But before she could accept death, Kalista heard a mighty roar pierce through the sky.

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"Girl, didn't I tell you never to go running into a life-or-death situation without me?"

Kalista could barely believe her eyes. There, just like before, was her red-headed best friend atop a massive, crimson dragon. Ryu let out another huge roar before releasing an orb of searing hot flames onto the throng of heartless. Then the beast swooped down towards the small group of fighters. Ember leaned towards them with her hand outstretched. Grabbing the person closest to her, which happened to be Donald, Kalista leapt up and took hold of her friend's hand as she hoisted her and a flabbergasted duck up on the dragon's back. Then Ember proceeded to help Sora and Kairi up as well.

"Hurry!" Kalista called, wrapping one arm around Ember's waist for support and stretching out her own hand towards Riku. He jumped up and caught it.

"A _dragon?"_ He yelled in her ear.

"I'll explain later," she yelled back, pulling him up to sit behind her. She saw Mickey and Goofy being swept up by Ryu's tail and then placed on his back.

"Alright, now let's get the hell out of here!" Ember said.

With that, she kicked Ryu's hide, and the dragon went soaring into the sky.

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**Hurray for Chapter 25!**

**I know, I know, it's not exactly like the game version of the story. Consider this a detour :P**

**Warning: I'm going out of the country in a couple of days, so I won't be able to update for the next few weeks. But I **_**will**_** update when I get back. I'm too close to finishing to weasel out on you now.**

**Peace out my readers :)**


	26. Chapter 26: You Don't Have To Be Alone

**Chapter 26**

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Even after so many life-threatening experiences in one day, the sheer exhaustion of current events proved too much for Kalista. Eventually her eyes closed as the steady beat of dragon wings lulled her to sleep. Yellow and black images danced across her dream vision, swirling around and around like a mass of abstract art. Wicked laughter echoed dimly in her ears along with the murmur of friendly voices. She felt more like she was in limbo than dreamland. At one point she thought she felt the beat of wings stop, but she was too lost in sleep to be sure. So she just kept drifting; drifting through the dim shadows of her fatigued mind…

* * *

Jolting awake, Kalista sat up instantly, only to feel the blood rush to her head in protest. Glancing around, she realized in shock that she was lying in her bed in Leon's house. The same green and brown scene lay before her, and she suddenly had never felt more at home in years. Gingerly, she slid out of bed and made her way to the door. Cracking it open, she heard voices downstairs. She followed them until she had made her way to the entrance room with the giant computer. Before her sat Cid at the computer, with Aerith, Tifa, and Cloud huddled around him all staring at the screens. Cloud was the first to notice her.

"Well, looks like Sleeping Beauty finally woke up," he teased, although there was a solemn tone coating his voice.

Kalista just rolled her eyes at the comment, "How long was I out? And… I mean… what happened? How did I get here?"

"Oh, poor thing, you must be so confused," said Aerith, walking over to Kalista and feeling her forehead. After making sure she had no temperature, she continued, "you were knocked out all the way back here, or at least that's what they told me. Leon took you upstairs to let you sleep; apparently you had a pretty rough day."

"Yeah, you could say that. Wait… where is Leon? And Sora and everyone else?"

"Just about everywhere but here," this time it was Cid who answered, eyes still locked on the computer screen, "see, when you folks came back Sora told us all about how that blasted Xemnes stole Kingdom Hearts right out of the sky and teleported somewhere else. Now it's up to us to find him. I've been using this half-broken contraption to configure which worlds have the best chance of being Xemnes' new location. So now just about everyone has split up and is searching those worlds for any sign… a giant heart-shaped moon in the sky, for example. Sora, Donald, Goofy, Leon, and Yuffie are all out hunting. Even your friend Ember took that massive pet dragon of hers and went with Yuffie."

"Cloud, Aerith and I were just about to head to a world and search ourselves," Tifa added.

"What about me?" asked Kalista, after taking a moment to digest all this information. She wasn't sure how well this wild-goose-chase plan would work, but she guessed it was their best bet for the time being. And she certainly didn't want to be left out of it.

"Well I was actually waiting until you woke up to ask you to search _this_ world," Cid explained, "I know there's no giant moon outside or anything, but this was Xehenort's lair a year ago, so it's very possible he could come back here. I already asked that new silver-haired kid to do it, but it's been ages and he's still not back. You might want to look for him while you're at it. You know, make sure he's still alive and all."

Cid laughed at his own joke, but Kalista found nothing funny about it. She felt her heart pick up its pace at Cid's words. Was Riku alright? Had he found something? Ambushed by heartless? Nobodies? Ideas flooded her mind with all the worst possibilities. From what she had seen, Riku could certainly handle himself. So why wouldn't he be back by now?

Pushing the chaotic thoughts away, Kalista nodded. "Ok, I'll be sure to do that. Good luck you guys," she said as she headed out the door.

* * *

It was twilight out in Hollow Bastion. The starts were a mosaic of light giving sight to those down below. The moon shone brightly; not a heart, but full, white, and luminous.

Kalista raced along the rooftops of the town. Her feet danced across the tops as she jumped swiftly from one house to the next. She wasn't sure exactly what she was looking for; how would anyone know what meant Kingdom Hearts? Overpowering darkness? An abundance of light? Swarms of heartless? Or the lack thereof? And where was Riku?

Yet, even though the anxiety of all this weighed down on her mind, she couldn't help this wonderful feeling; the feeling of freedom. Her body, mind, and soul were completely rid of the retched curse that had plagued her for so long. Everything about her felt lighter, fuller, and freer all at the same time. It was like a dark haze that surrounded her had been lifted, and now she saw clearer and felt so… normal. So natural.

By the time she was nearing the end of the houses, Kalista was beginning to feel at a loss for where to look. Slowing to a stop, she looked up at the moon. _It must be around midnight_, she reasoned. Crouching on the rooftop, she stared at the battered shingles lining its surface. For lack of anything better to do, she began to picture the owners of her current resting place. _Wonder who used to live here? What was his name? Wonder what his parents were like… _She looked back up at the sky, getting more imaginative in her curiosity._ Wonder if he ever fought a heartless? Or a nobody? What were his hopes and dreams? Wonder if he ever fell in love…_

"What the hell are you staring at?"

Kalista bolted up so fast that she lost her balance on the skinny peak of roof. The unsteady shingles gave way, and she found herself sliding down the side of the house. But before she got far a sturdy hand caught her and pulled her back up to safety.

"R…Riku!" Kalista said in surprise. But surprise quickly turned to embarrassment and then anger. "What the heck is wrong with you? You don't just sneak up on people like that."

Riku let go of her arm abruptly, "Sneak up? All I did was ask you a question. Not my fault you weren't paying attention."

To this Kalista could not argue, since he was right. "Well, where have you been?" she asked, turning it back on him, "Cid said he sent you out searching for signs of Kingdom Hearts, but you were supposed to be back hours ago."

Riku just shrugged. "Since when does Cid make the rules?" he said, as if he could care less.

His tone annoyed and confused Kalista. There had seemed to be such an alliance between them during the fight at the Organization's base, and now suddenly she felt as if he were a cold stranger. Honestly, that was closer to the truth, but it still didn't seem right.

"So, haveyou found anything?" she ventured.

He wasn't looking at her anymore. In fact, he seemed more like he was purposefully avoiding her gaze. Taking a seat on the roof, he stared at the fast array of houses before him. "No, nothing," he finally answered, "I've looked everywhere; the town, the canyons, even all over the castle. Kingdom Hearts just isn't here."

Kalista sighed in frustration. "If it wasn't here, what are the chances it will be anywhere else?" she asked dejectedly, also sitting down.

"…I don't know," was all Riku said. He seemed very detached; it seemed to Kalista he didn't want her near him, which annoyed her even more. What had gotten into him? She wasn't dangerous anymore. Was this just habit now? If he didn't want to be around her why didn't _he_ leave?

But instead of getting up and letting him be, she asked the question that had been burning in her mind ever since she realized what she and Riku had in common. And maybe it would get him out of whatever mood swing he seemed to be in.

"So, why did _you_ serve Maleficent?"

This time it was Riku's turn to be surprised. He stared at her, taken aback.

"What?"

"Oh, come on," said Kalista, rolling her eyes, "I'm not an idiot. When you held me back from killing her, the look in your eyes said it all; you didn't want me making the exact same mistake you did, with the _exact_ same person. Well, I didn't go for it because of you, so I think you owe me at least some sort of explanation."

Riku looked away again. He gave a small smirk, "I forget that you're smarter than Sora and his new friends. Living in the shadows forces you to think faster and deeper, just to survive."

"But the whole point is to get beyond the shadows, isn't it?" she asked softly, "otherwise, you lose yourself to them."

He gave a small nod. At first, Kalista thought he wouldn't answer. But then, taking a breath, he said, "Maleficent won me over the same way she won your old boyfriend over. She knew what cards to play with me, and what made me tick. She knew how jealous I was of Sora becoming the Keyblade Master, and offered me power beyond his. And… the chance of winning Kairi."

"Kairi?" Kalista asked in surprise. Riku had been in love with her too? This she hadn't expected.

"Yeah, Sora and I competed over everything. She was the most important thing in the world to him, so naturally I fought him over her. But… it wasn't the same with her and me. I never cared for her the way he did…"

Riku's voice trailed off as if he felt like he had said more than he planned. He picked back up on a different topic. "Anyway, I was… well, proven wrong about a lot of stuff. I had gained all this power, but Sora still managed to beat me. I hit a point where I was so angry at Sora for besting me and at Maleficent for failing me that I was willing to do anything to get back at them. That's when Ansem came to me. It was the biggest mistake of my life, and it consumed me just like your Shaymar…"

Riku fell silent, again as if he had said too much. Kalista watched him quietly, wonder what horrors he must have gone through because of his choices. And yet, for some reason, she was so happy he made those choices. Otherwise, the two of them would never have met. She didn't know why that fact meant so much to her, but it did. Regardless of his newfound hostility, she still felt the connection between them from before, and it begged her to speak her mind.

"You're wrong about one thing," she said softly. Riku finally met her gaze, looking perplexed at her statement. Kalista wasn't sure how to explain how she felt, but it came streaming out of her regardless, "you keep comparing yourself to the boy from my past. Yes, you both succumbed to the promise power offered you… but the comparison stops there." She heard the emotion seeping into her voice as she continued, "You didn't give in like Shaymar did; you fought back. You turned on your friends, but you came back."

Without realizing it, she slipped her hand into his. "You came back to the light, Riku. I've never met anyone who could go so far into the darkness and still come back. You're unlike anyone I've ever known."

For a moment, Riku just stared at her face, inches from his own, and Kalista could have sworn he had stopped breathing. But then he snatched his hand away as if hers was made of fire.

"Don't." he said coldly, getting up and walking away with his back turned to her.

Kalista stared after him, bewildered at her actions. What was she doing? Why had she just grabbed his hand? But instead of following logical thought—which would have sent her running mortified in the other direction—she ignored reason and followed him.

"What?! "Don't" what?" she asked, partially in confused hurt and partly in anger.

Riku stopped walking, but didn't look at her. "Don't say that. Don't pretend like you know me. You don't know me."

But this rebuke didn't faze Kalista at all. "I know _everything_ about you. Remember, I've been with you best friend for months and he never shut up once about you. You're great with a sword, the fastest runner on Destiny Island, and stubborn as hell."

"Shut up," Riku told her angrily.

But Kalista ignored him, and began pouring out more information to solicit another response, "you're obsessed with ships, but you're a terrible swimmer. You're cocky, confident, competitive, and barely let anyone in to know the real you."

"I said _shut up_!" by now Riku had spun around and was right in front of her. He grabbed her by the shoulders roughly. "What the hell do you want from me, huh? Why don't you just leave me alone? Some people are just meant to be alone. I'm one of them.

"Only because you choose to be," Kalista shot back, feeling a lump in her throat, "You don't have to be alone if you don't want to. You have friends who care about you, if you'd only let them."

"You don't understand. Anyone close to me always winds up getting hurt. I belong alone, whether I want it or not."

"Liar!" she accused, "I know because you're just like me; afraid of love because it means a bond that could hurt you beyond recovery. You don't want to take that chance, because it's so much easier and safer to be lonely. But then what are you? An empty shell, a life without a soul, a walking corpse. Just a stranger waiting to die…"

"_Shut up_ already!" yelled Riku in a pained voice, "and please stop crying. I can't stand seeing you cry."

Kalista stopped her rampant speech as her hands flew to her face. Salt water streaming from her eyes greeted her fingers. She _was_ crying. It had been so long since she'd shed a single tear, she had almost forgotten what it felt like. And the tears kept coming, as if making up for lost time.

Riku made a move to leave, as if her tears were too much for him. But Kalista latched on to his arms. "No," she whispered, "don't…"

"Let go," he said, as if her touch electrified him, "We should never have met. You can't care about me like this. You just can't. And I can't care about you. So please, just leave…"

But before he could finish, he was silenced by Kalista's mouth against his. Her hands rose swiftly to either side of his face, holding him against her. At first his body went ridged with shock. But, with his lips silenced, his greatest form of protest was defeated, and soon the rest of him followed.

Giving in, he slid his arms around her slender waste, pressing her closer to his chest. As their mouths shifted position, their tongues touched for the briefest moment, sending a chill down Kalista's spine. Nothing in her life had felt more right than this. All the pent up emotion inside of her towards Riku was now finally explained, and it seeped out from her body to his, and she felt his passion pulsing through her.

Finally, they broke the kiss. His aqua eyes betrayed everything he felt, and she had no doubt her eyes were just as revealing. Entwining her fingers in his, Riku gave her a small smirk.

"Great," he murmured in her hair, "now look what you've done."

"Oh, I beg your pardon," Kalista breathed back jokingly, "I'll be sure never to do it again…"

"Too late," answered Riku as he cut her off with another kiss.

* * *

**I know I know I disappeared off the planet for a while. Lo siento mucho**

**But I said I'd finish this sucker and I plan to, regardless of my many detours.**

**Review review por favor**


	27. Chapter 27: This Is It

**Chapter 27**

* * *

{Pshhhhhh hhhh hhh} *hello?*

Cid, fast asleep on the computer keyboard, struggled to wake himself.

{pshhhh} *hello? Please, is anyone there?!*

"Huh? Who's there?" He asked groggily, looking around the room, trying to appear like he hadn't been sleeping on the job. But there was no one else in the room except him. Maybe he was just dreaming…

*Oh thank goodness! I wasn't sure if I'd be able to reach anyone.*

"What in the blasted… AHH!" Cid jumped clumsily out of his chair in surprise. Before him on the computer screen was the image of a young boy with brown hair and a distressed look on his face.

Recovering from his previous shock, Cid made his way back to his seat. "Well what do ya know, this junk heap can actually transmit. Now who the heck are you, kid? How'd ya tap into my frequency?"

{pshhhh} *My name is Pence, and I live in Twilight Town. Please mister, I've been trying forever to get in contact with anyone! Something really bad's going on here. There are heartless and nobodies everywhere! My friend and I are trapped in the Grand Mansion, so this computer was the only way I could get help.*

"Xemnas!" Cid cried, pounding his fist on the table, "why the blast didn't I think of Twilight Town earlier? Don't worry kid, help's on the way."

*please hurry!* {pshhh} *oh no, I'm losing you!* {pshhh} *just get here as fast as you can…* {pshhhhhhhhhhhhh...}

And with that, the image disappeared off the screen and replaced with grey static.

"Hey Cid!"

Cid turned abruptly to see Sora, Donald, Goofy, Kairi, and King Mickey tumble through the door. "We're back and ready for our next world to search. Hey, who were you talking to? We heard someone yelling in here…"

"Get back on the gummi ship!" ordered Cid, herding the group right back towards the door.

"Huh?" asked Sora in confusion.

"No time to explain," urged Cid, "I've found Kingdom Hears; it's in Twilight Town. You guys have to get there now!"

"We're on it!" cried Donald, rushing out the door to start the ship.

"But, what about Leon and Riku and everybody else?"

"There's no time to wait for them. You're the keyblade master; this is your fight, after all. You've got to get going _now_."

"But…"

"He's right, Sora," Mickey concurred, "no time to waste. Let's go!"

With that, the five of them ran back out into the streets of Hallow Bastion, where the gummi ship was roaring to life. As they began boarding, Sora couldn't help feeling worried. Were there enough of them to take on Xemnas? What if they failed just due to lack of numbers? He couldn't fight Xemnas and protect Kairi and his friends all at the same…

"Hey Sora!"

Sora whirled around at the sound of his name. There, down the street, was Kalista running towards him, followed closely by Riku. Relief swelled up inside of him, but he couldn't help being a little mad at such a close call.

"Where the heck have you two been?" he drilled as they reached him, "We found out Kingdom Hearts is in Twilight Town. We almost had to leave without you guys."

"Oh, uhh…" Sora saw Kalista and Riku look at each other, and then look away as if in embarrassment. He could have sworn Kalista was turning pink. "We…we were… looking for Kingdom Hearts like Cid told us to."

Sora had no idea what was really going on, but before he could question further the gummi ship blasted its horn impatiently.

"Come on!" Donald yelled, sticking his head out the window, "Let's move it slowpokes!"

Without another word the three of them climbed into the ship. Donald revved the engine and took off into the sky.

* * *

"Garrrrsh, would ja look at that."

Twilight Town was almost unrecognizable. The sky was painted black with clouds as jagged blue lightning streaked across its dark canvas. The buildings were nothing but empty haunted houses, and the streets swarmed with heartless. The gummi ship had barely been able to land through the storms, and now the seven warriors of light stood before a world of chaos.

"Look there!" Kairi shouted, pointing to the right. Far off in the distance, at the top of a hill by the sea, the giant white doors of Kingdom Hearts could be seen.

"How the heck are we supposed to get there?" asked Donald, looking back at the streets lined with their brainless but lethal enemies.

"The woods," Mickey reasoned out loud, "The town is large and has the majority of people, so the heartless and nobodies will be drawn there. There will be far less of them in the woods, and the path will lead us right to the seashore." With that, he dashed in the direction of the forest.

"Ok then," Sora said, drawing forth his keyblade, "let's go."

He, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi sprinted after the king. But as Riku began to follow, Kalista clutched his arm with more force than she meant.

"Wait," she said hoarsely. Riku looked at her, perplexed. Kalista felt her legs shaking so badly she had to hold on to him for support. A feeling of dread had risen up inside her so strongly that it threatened to bring her to her knees. "I… I don't know if I can do this. This isn't just any other fight. Riku, this is _it_." She couldn't look him in the eyes, preferring instead to admit her cowardice to the ground.

"What if we're not strong enough? What if we lose, or what if someone gets… what if you…?" But she couldn't bring herself to voice her full fear. So much was at stake. So much that she loved was hanging in the balance, and losing any of it scared her to death.

But then she felt Riku lift her chin up to face him. "I know," he whispered, planting a soft kiss on her lips, "but no more "what ifs". The choice of whether we fight or not was never ours to make. We have to do this; every world is depending on us." He grasped her shoulders and touched his forehead against hers. "Listen to me: we're going to fight, we're going to win, and we're all coming out of this alive."

"But how can you be sure?" Kalista asked.

Riku laughed softly, "because Sora told me so, and he always ends up being right."

"Speaking of Sora," said Kalista, who had earlier realized the awkwardness of their situation, "don't you think we should tell him that you and I are… um…"

Riku laughed again, louder this time. "I think he's got enough to worry about right now. We don't want him overloading or anything. Now let's go before we get left behind."

* * *

The sea of Twilight Town had turned as black as the sky, save for the brilliantly white tips of the massive waves. It made the ocean look like the giant mouth of some evil sea monster, whose rows and rows of sharp teeth crashed against the cliffs, trying to swallow it whole. Atop the cliff hovered the entrance to Kingdom Hearts, the only white light in the dark world.

As they had all finally reached the top of the hill, Sora looked at both Mickey and Riku. The three of them came together and faced the giant colorless doors. Raising their blades, three beams of light shot forth, entwining to create one shaft of light that penetrated the massive entranceway. Without a sound, the doors swung open.

"Kingdom Hearts..." murmered Mickey

"Let's go," urged Riku, "Xemnas must be inside."

Mickey nodded, "The worlds gave us this doorway. They want us to be the guardians of their destiny."

Kalista walked up to stand beside them. The open door revealed nothing but darkness. She looked at Riku, and their eyes met. "Once we go through," he said, "there's no turning back. So, Sora," he asked, turning to his best friend, "are you ready? Do you remember before? We stood facing each other on opposite sides of that door. Now we stand side-by-side. Let's go home together this time."

Sora nodded with a look of determination, "Let's end this!"

Kalista took a deep breath, and walked with her friends towards the darkness.

* * *

"Xemnas… what have you done?!" cried Mickey.

Before them, inside Kingdom Hearts, was a giant city. Warped buildings towered above them, and at the center, hovering on a monstrous machine weapon, sat Xemnas.

"So...it seems your hearts have led you to obliteration," his voice boomed, "Perhaps it doesn't pay to be too loyal to one's heart. I will have to be sure and remember that. And now… your oblivion."

Xemnas disappeared into his machine fortress. No sooner had he vanished than one of the buildings uprooted itself and flew in their direction.

"LOOK OUT!" Mickey cried, pulling Kairi back towards the entrance to avoid the airborne structure. The others followed and just barely missed the building as it collapsed on the ground behind them. All of a sudden, the doors of Kingdom Hearts began rapidly closing. Kalista realized too late that Mickey and Kairi had run so far they were outside the entrance.

"No!" she heard Sora yell. But the doors slammed shut before he could stop them.

"Don't worry about them," shouted Riku, "they'll be fine. Come on!"

The five of them raced towards the center of the distorted city, dodging buildings as Xemnas threw them.

"Foolish mortals," sneered Xemnas, "you think you can actually defeat me?"

He snapped his fingers, and ground on which Kalista ran began to move. The floor started splitting into multiple platforms and floating in different directions.

"Sora! Riku!" Kalista yelled as she they flew in one direction and she in another. Donald and Goofy were the only ones still on the ground.

"Everybody just get to Xemnas," Riku yelled, "no matter what you do, just make it to the center." He and Sora jumped from their platform to another, again heading towards the middle.

Kalista, now alone, figured the best way to get off of these crazy platforms was to make some of her own. Muttering a quick spell, she shot forward dozens of water spurts, which she then froze into small squares of ice. Jumping from her platform to the closest ice square, she started running across them to the center.

It was surprisingly easy, considering Xemnas was focusing most of his energy on Sora. He threw building after building, but Sora would just slash right through the hurtling edifice with his keyblade, continuing his pursuit. Kalista only had to dodge the constant debris of the shattered structures that Sora left in his wake.

With a final lunge, she landed on the giant machine holding Xemnas at the same time as Sora. Riku, Donald, and Goofy followed shortly. Running inside the entrance, they were stopped short by a huge metal gate blocking the way to the machine's core, where Xemnas was located. Nobodies appeared from the ground, forcing Kalista to fight them off. Goofy and Donald then rushed forward with a combination attack. As they kept the nobodies preoccupied, Sora and Riku attacked the metal container hiding their enemy in safety. But their swords were no match for the steel barrier.

"Kalista!" Sora yelled, pointing at the metal. Instantly she knew what he needed. Coating her sais with magic, she lunged up and plunged the weapons into the metal, freezing it over. Then, simultaneously, Sora and Riku drove their blades into the shield as well, causing it to shatter.

They rushed into the inner chamber to find Xemnas seated on a giant thrown in full body armor.

"Cursed fools!" he cried, summoning countless weapons out of midair and hurling them in their direction. Kalista dodged the katars that flew at her. But she wasn't fast enough to avoid one, and she felt the cold metal slice through her shoulder. Crying out in pain, she dropped one of her sai and grasped the deep wound, attempting to slow the bleeding.

"Kalista!" she heard Riku yell her name. But then she felt her blood stop running, and realized Donald was right behind her casting his healing magic.

Sora and Xemnas were going head-to-head. Riku and Goofy were attacking him from behind. But Xemnas' armor made him greater than all three of them.

"Kalista," said Donald, "we need to do the same thing to him as the metal gate; only this time with fire added in."

Kalista looked at Donald, then back at Xemnas. "Do you think that will actually work?"

"It's our only chance."

Nodding, Kalista invoked the last of her magic. Donald, twirling his staff, rushed forward and set off a huge fire spell. Forming a flaming twister, he launched it at Xemnas, warning the others to stay back. Before Xemnas could retaliate, he was trapped inside the blaze.

"Ready… now!" Donald yelled. Kalista shot out her hands and sent an enormous wave of ice-cold water crashing onto the molten armored man. With a cry Xemnas realized that his armor had been frozen solid, and he could not move.

"Sora! Riku! Attack him now!" Kalista shouted. At last understanding their plan, Sora and Riku attacked the immobilized Xemnas together, thrusting their swords into his back and front. The armor began to crack; from the sword piercings to the rest of the armor, until the entire suit shattered into a million pieces

With a cry of pain Xemnas was flung out of the armor and struck the nearby wall. He fell hard to the ground, and after a few moments was still unable to stand. The five of them surrounded him, keeping their weapons at the ready.

Crawling to his knees, he struggled to speak. "I need...more rage," he gasped, "I need more...hearts..."

Seeing that Xemnas could no longer fight back, Sora lowered his blade. "Xemnas," he said, still trying to get through to the Nobody leader, "There's more to a heart than just anger or hate. It's full of all kinds of feelings. Don't you remember?"

Xemnas looked at the ground and gave a rough laugh. "Unfortunately… I don't."

Then, like each and every Nobody before him, Xemnas became shrouded in shadow and started disappearing into darkness.

And then he was gone.

* * *

**Woo-hoo! One more chapter to go, my wonderful readers**

**And fear not, because it's already completed and ready to go**

**Love you all! :)**


	28. Chapter 28: Home

**Chapter 28**

* * *

"Sora!" Kairi rushed into his arms as her weary friends came out of Kingdom Hearts. The giant doors then swung shut, and vanished into the evening sky.

It appeared that the world had stabilized; the storm clouds were gone and the seas had grown calm. Donald and Goofy ran to embrace their beloved king, and excited talking and laughter followed. Kalista's half-healed shoulder still throbbed, but her heart was filled with such happiness that she didn't even care. Could it really be all over? Shyly, she let her hand slip into Riku's for just a moment. He looked back at her and gave a small smile. But he seemed distant; like something was bothering him.

"Gosh, you all did great!" praised Mickey. "Now it's finally time to go back home."

_Home?_ thought Kalista. The wonderful feelings inside her faltered. What home? Her home was never in the same place twice. So, is this the part where everyone leaves and goes back to where they were before all of this? Did that mean… this had to be goodbye?

But suddenly Sora ran up to her and punched her good shoulder. "Why the long face? Didn't think you're getting rid of us that easily, did you? You're coming back with us!"

"Wh…huh?" stammered Kalista, rubbing her now-bruised shoulder, "back with you?"

"Of course, to Destiny Islands! You'll totally love it there, and I know everyone will love you. And don't try to argue, because it won't work."

Sora grinned at her so wide that she couldn't help breaking out into a smile herself. A real home? The idea would take some getting used to, but how could she run from something as wonderful as this?

Sora then turned to Riku. "You're coming back with us, right?" he asked with far less certainty than before. Kalista looked at him, too, but he was looking at the floor beneath him.

"I… I don't know. I had given in to the darkness."

"Riku!" Sora threw his hands up in the air in frustration at his friend's gloomy point of view.

"How will I be able to face everyone?" Riku shot back.

"Like this!" Sora squished his face together and stuck out his tough. Kalista hid a smile behind her hand, but Riku laughed out loud.

Suddenly the ground beneath them started to shake.

"We have to get out of here," cautioned King Mickey, "this world was a creation sustained by Ansem, and then held together by Xemnas. With both of them gone, it will soon disappear."

"I'll open a path," said Riku, and stretched out his hand… only nothing happened. Confused, he examined his hands, trying to figure out what was wrong.

But Mickey had the answer, "You're not a part of the dark realm anymore, Riku."

No sooner had the king spoken than a swirling portal formed right near him.

"Who did that?" asked Donald.

"I'm not sure," said Mickey as he gazed at the portal, "but we'd better hurry and get through."

"Well, what are we waitin' for? I'll go first," said Goofy, who then proceeded to walk through the portal. Donald and Mickey followed close behind. Suddenly a girl in a white dress and blonde hair appeared in front of the portal. Kalista had never seen her before, but Kairi apparently had.

"Thank you, Naminé."

The girl smiled, "Sure thing." Then she turned to Sora, "See? We meet again, like we promised."

"Huh?" asked Sora, unsure of what she was talking about. But as Kalista watched in awe, a translucent boy with blonde hair walked right out of Sora's body and up to Naminé.

"You said we'd meet again," he continued, "but when we did, we might not recognize each other.

The girl gave a sparkling laugh "I did, didn't I?"

"But I knew you," the boy said softly.

"I always though Nobodies were doomed to fade back into darkness..."

"Yeah, but you and I didn't. We got to meet our original selves."

Naminé broke into a wide grin, "So, we can be together again!"

The boy returned her smile and nodded. "Right. Now that Sora and Kairi are together, so are we."

And as quickly as they had appeared, the angelic couple flew back into Sora and Kairi.

After a moment of standing there dumbfounded, Sora checked himself.

"Don't worry," assured Riku, "it's all still you."

Kalista just shook her head at the whole ordeal that had just taken place. "You're explaining all this to me later, right?"

Riku gave her a half-smile, "Sure."

"Good."

"Ok, now let's go home," said Kairi, eagerly grabbing Kalista's hand. The two of them walked into the portal as the boys followed.

But then, Kalista felt the portal magic dissipating rapidly. Something had cut the spell short! Realizing in alarm that Sora and Riku were not in the portal, she spun around.

"Riku! Sora! The portal…!"

But it was too late. Kalista felt herself flung in the other direction as the entranceway of the portal snapped shut, separating the four of them permanently.

"Kairi! Hold on to me and don't let go!" she yelled as the two of them went spiraling towards an unknown location.

Colors swirled around them in vibrant arrays, but they were moving so fast everything became blurred together. This was no normal teleportation; the magic alteration had affected the portal's transportation ability as well.

But finally, the colors disappeared and Kalista felt Kairi and herself thrown out the other end of the portal. A strange surface greeted them as they skidded across the ground. Kalista felt the wind get knocked out of her, and she laid there for several minutes, panting and trying to figure out where they could be.

Everything was dark. Not pitch black, but dark enough that she couldn't recognize anything. Rising out of the ground she saw looming dark objects, like maybe strangely shaped buildings. The ground beneath her was hard but soft at the same time. There was a strange sound coming from her left; a constant, beating sound. Eventually, she was able to push herself up onto her feet, although standing was difficult.

"Kairi, where are we?" Kalista asked, feeling disoriented and hoping her companion might know more than she did.

"I… I'm not sure," came the answer. She could see Kairi's outline and gradually the features of her face.

"Kalista? Kairi? Is that you guys?"

"Donald!?" asked Kalista, identifying the unmistakable voice. She saw his short silhouette waddling towards her, and two more figures behind him.

"Goofy? King Mickey?" whispered Kairi.

"What the heck is going on here?" Kalista dropped to one knee to avoid falling over. Touching the ground, she picked up some of the earth, only to realize it was actually black sand. "Where are we?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," answered Mickey, "where are Sora and Riku?"

"They… they got left behind." Kalista felt the unaccustomed tears fill her eyes again. What had happened to them? Did they make it out of Twilight Town alive? Where was Riku?!

"_Kalista! Behind you!_"

She turned around just in time to see a pair of yellow eyes charging at her. Out of reflex she knocked it away with her hand, but the heartless latched onto her arm with its razor sharp teeth. Muffling a scream, Kalista drew one of her sais and stuck the creature of darkness, causing it to vanish.

"There's more!" yelled Donald.

He was right. Although their bodies were hard to see, Kalista saw dozens of yellow eyes surrounding them.

"This must mean Xemnas isn't dead!" Mickey concluded, drawing his own keyblade, "he must have been the one who severed the portal and trapped Sora and Riku. I bet they're fighting him right now."

"Alone!" cried Kairi in dismay. Kalista felt a lump form in her throat. How would the two of them be able to beat such a powerful Nobody by themselves?

"It can't be helped," Mickey said, "it's the final battle. And this is our part. Everybody get in a defensive formation!"

But Kalista was not feeling to hopeful about this "final battle". She was completely out of magic from the fight with Ansem, and her wounded shoulder made her a less than formidable opponent. Still, she had no choice. It was fight… or die.

"Now!" Mickey yelled.

Kalista lunged at the nearest cluster of yellow eyes. Donald, thankfully, still had magic on his side, and he shot out a storm of lighting which cut through countless heartless. The lighting also allowed Kalista to see her enemies more clearly, and she slashed through them two by two.

But no sooner were the dozens of heartless gone than countless more appeared. Donald shot a blanket of fire up in the sky, letting everyone see their enemies. He and Donald started using combination attacks, and Kairi and Mickey worked together as well.

Kalista hacked through heartless after heartless, but no matter how many she killed, five more appeared in their place. She knew she was running out of energy, and she struggled to thrust one sai after the other.

Then she felt a heartless jump on her back and knock her to the ground. She felt more of them surrounding her and closing in. The one on her back sank its teeth into her damaged shoulder. Kalista screamed out in agony.

Was this is? After all this: watching Shaymar die, carrying and then beating the curse, befriending Sora, fighting the leaders of darkness alongside him… meeting Riku… was it really all going to end like this? Was it all for nothing?

"Kalista! NO!"

…

…

…

Everything went white!

Kalista, blinded by the harsh brightness raining down on her, clamped her eyes shut. In her ear she heard the heartless on top of her screeching in pain. Opening her eyes slightly, she saw it dissipate into thin air. Then she heard more screeching, louder this time. Forcing herself to sit up, she realized that a giant beam of light had shot down from the sky onto the tiny band of fighters, and it was destroying the heartless! Every single one withered away under the brilliant radiance. She felt her shoulder tingling and then miraculously heal. Her weariness was gone and her body filled with new energy.

Then, even more incredible, the light began widening. Stretching across the darkness, it ran swifter and swifter until it flew across everything in sight. Kalista realized the ground beneath her was sand, but now it was a sparkling gold. The dark buildings became massive clusters of trees, and the strange sound turned out to be the waves of a vast, beautiful ocean. The sky was a perfect blue, spotted with pearl-colored clouds.

"I can't believe it!"

"What? Where are we?!" Kalista asked in wonder, staring at Kairi.

"It's Destiny Islands. We're _home_!"

"Look there!" Goofy shouted, pointing at the sky.

It looked like two azure stars were falling from the heavens. Streaking across the sky, they crashed into the sea where the sun was coming up over the horizon. Then the unthinkable happened. Two human heads came back out of the water where the stars had fallen; one brown and the other a silver-blue.

"It _can't_ be!" Kalista breathed, not believing her eyes.

"Sora! Riku!" yelled Kairi at the top of her lungs, waving frantically in unspeakable excitement.

Donald, Goofy, Mickey, and Kairi ran to the shore as the boys swam to meet them. Kalista struggled to her feet on the unsteady sand, and just stood there for a moment. Feeling water on her face, she touched her check to find the infamous tears that had finally succeeded in breaching the gates of her eyes. Only these were not tears of sorrow, but of joy. A joy beyond anything she had ever felt before. Kalista laughed through her tears, and then sprinted across the sand.

Riku had just reached the shore when she got to him. She was running so fast she couldn't even stop herself from colliding into him, knocking them both into the water. Laughing, he sat up and locked his arms around her waist, burying his face in her neck. Then, after a moment, he brought one of his hands to her face and stared into her eyes.

"We're back," he said breathlessly.

"We're _home_," she corrected, pressing her lips against his. She _was_ home, and it was everything she had every dreamed it could be.

"…ehem."

Breaking the kiss, the two of them looked over.

"Ok," began Sora, "I know you two have a bad habit of not telling me stuff, but this is just ridiculous…"

**THE END**


End file.
